The Path to Redemption
by stringdog
Summary: Defying the Dark Lord is hard enough, doing so as a Death Eater is almost impossible. That is what Regulus does when he realizes the extents to which Voldemort will go to obtain power. For the first time, Regulus tells his story of how he became a Death Eater, defied the Dark Lord and survived on the run as he sought redemption. This is the 1st spinoff in my HP/ATLA series.
1. Chapter 1

**Here is the first spinoff story in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossover universe. The idea for this came to me while writing chapter 23 of Book 1: Purity as a potential spinoff story focusing on Regulus' reasons for leaving the Death Eaters and his journey to make amends for his actions. This is a little different as this is only my second foray into 1st person writing (the other was deleted for personal reasons) so bear with me while I try to work out the kinks. Also this is written as a memoirs so there is not going to be as much dialog and more about Regulus' feelings and views as they develop over the course of the story so there will be rambling tangents at times as Regulus tries to recall things and explain certain actions. It is going to be shorter, both in chapter length (3-6k words per chapter) and in total chapters (projected at 13 plus an epilogue). However, as with all of my work in this series, there will be a message within the writings, in this case the problems with brainwashing, echo chambers, and the struggles to break from an extreme philosophy. I had initially planned this for after the release of Avatar: The Tale of Harry: The Lost Adventures but after realizing that it was on the shorter side and there was a gap between the end of Book 2 and the release of Book 3, I decided to write it now. There are other spinoffs planned, including a potential Pyrites tetralogy, a collection addressing the philosophies of the various major antagonists, stories on the major supporters of the antagonists, origin stories for Voldemort, Hermione and the Enlightened (as well as other classified villains), and other stories based of events in Books 3, 4, or 5. These are just proposals though and many are a long way off. Enough large block text rambling, here is the first chapter in the first spinoff, stand alone, story; The Path to Redemption.  
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**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to either the Harry Potter, Avatar: The Last Airbender, or Avatar: The Legend of Korra universes.**

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**Chapter 1**

Redemption, what is it?

To some it is a singular act, an act in which one redeems oneself in the eyes of one's own self, one's family, one's society, or even the world. It can be as simply as an act of kindness to a downtrodden stranger who needs food, money, shelter or just a friend to talk too, or as big as saving a city from the forces of a great evil. To others it is a lifetime of good deeds or actions to redeem for a misspent youth or indiscretion(s) that one must atone for. And to a few it is the ultimate sacrifice, that of one's life to save a loved one or a populace from destruction.

Though I fall into the second camp, those who perpetually seek to redeem themselves for their past indiscretions and beliefs, it is the final one that always gets to me. I am more often drawn to the sacrifice of Hiroshi Sato during Kuvira's invasion of Republic City than to that of General Moody during the Second Purity War a few years back. This is because I see some parallels between myself and Hiroshi in the fact that we both aided an evil, charismatic, insane, bloodbenders, and we both made strives to atone for our sins in the end. The differences are that Hiroshi's evil and involvement with his leader was greater than mine and as such his redemption was likewise greater for he sacrificed his own life to save Republic City. By contrast I was just a lowly follower and I am still breathing today.

Perhaps one day I will show the same fortitude to die to protect those whom I love, be it to save them, allow them to escape, or allow them to defeat the enemy who has slain me, but that day is not upon me. No, today is the story of my own path to redemption, my long journey from that of a naïve and brainwashed kid to learning the truth of the situation I had willingly found myself in and the lengths to which those I thought of as fellow believers would go to achieve the ends that we had all shared. This realization puts me on my final path to realizing my wrongs and my attempt to redeem myself for those sins.

My tale is not one of romance or great adventure. It is not of love and loss. It is not an epic. There will be no battles of heroism, though I am seen as a hero now following my greatest act of redemption to date, nor will there be any great defeats that I must overcome. There will be no bravery or courage other than my decision to walk away and survive against the odds while my former colleagues try to hunt me down. There is loss, there is humbling, there is realization of my mistakes and how all of this made me into the man that I am today. It is a tale of how I found the truth, how I began to make amends for my wrongs, how I reunited with the world and restored my name in the eyes of those who matter to me.

I do not ask for pity or sorrow for what I went through, I know that I do not deserve it for what I have done in the past and who I have helped, nor do I ask for praise for what little I have done to correct my past actions, I was only doing what I felt was right to make amends for the wrongs I have done. I only ask that those who read my journey, my memoirs of sorts, read closely and see what I went through so that others may never experience what I did all those years ago. I ask that you see the struggle of conscience I had as I was forced to question the very tenets of my beliefs, of what I had grown up believing to be the truth and how I came to realize just how wrong I was.

This book will hopefully be a lesson to those who read it in the perils and seduction of extremism, of the manipulation of children and young adults whose minds are not fully capable of understanding the shit that they are being fed in a truly reasonable way. It is a lesson of how it is essential to challenge your inherent views and not seclude yourself in an echo chamber so that you might find your true self. I certainly do not advise going down the path I went down for I did not go down it by choice nor did I go down it easily. It may have made me who I am today, it may have matured me, but there are better ways to find oneself than my way. I hope that mine serves as a cautionary tale of how to avoid the path I took.

During my journey I endured hardships that many before me have endured, though few came from where I had to begin with. Few fell from the position I was in and fewer still did what I did and walk willingly into my hardships knowing what was to come and knowing that it was the only way forward. I experienced things that I would have never dreamed of growing up the way I did, but I did it out of necessity at the time. I did it all to save my own life and countless others, and along the way I realized the truth. Despite these hardships, if faced with the same scenario, I would do them all over again in a heartbeat.

It took many years for me to truly see what the world was like, for me to burst my bubble. Even during my initial journey, when I had set out to save my life, I did not fully realize the truth nor did I truly challenge my views because I felt that what I was doing was preserving the philosophy I had at the time by walking away from that fateful mission. It was an act of self preservation, but it led to self discovery.

It was only after years of hardship along my journey, of doing what I needed to do to survive, of seeing the world for what it truly was outside of the places I had known growing up did I even begin to realize it. However, it took me a full decade of living a life I would never have dreamed of to fully appreciate what I had come to understand during those first few years on the run. It took me 15 long years to come to where I am today but it was worth it in the end.

I am writing this story, telling the full truth as best I can remember it as this is a work of memory and is done so by my best recollections of the events, for the first time at the request of one person, a man who I respect beyond any in this world for what he has accomplished in his short life. He was the one who realized who I was, he had shown me kindness before he knew the truth but a lucky coincidence, or the divine will of the universe we may never know, he realized who I truly was. It was he who asked my own brother to bring me back in from the cold, from my self-imposed exile and punishment, it was he who realized that I deserved a chance to atone for what I had done and help bring down who I had once supported and whom I had once called my brothers. That person is none other than Avatar Harry himself.

How the Avatar found me and asked my brother to bring me in is already common knowledge. We have both talked about it extensively in the years since I was granted a full pardon for my crimes in the aftermath of the Second Purity War. What we haven't talked about, what no one but my own brother knows, is how I ended up where he could find me, what I did to get there in the first place, and everything along the way that opened my eyes to the truths of the world.

It is because of my unique story that the Avatar sought me out for my advice for a mission that he is about to undertake. At the time of writing, Harry has just left my rooms at the Elemental Academy where I am a master in the Water House and teaching as part of my personal redemption so that those who are now where I was when I was seduced by darkness might not make the same mistakes that I made in my youth. I told the Avatar all I had been through and it was he who suggested that I finally write down my story.

I mentioned to the Avatar that I am not a gifted writer but he said not to worry because I am telling my story. That is why I ask those who read my book to bear with me as I tell my story. All dialog is as I best recall it, as are what happened, and I will meander at times to try to set up certain key moments along my journey and how events unrelated to the major story, such as my hunting skills, are important to the story itself. However, for the first of what is no doubt many times to come, I have digressed. Back to the Avatar's request.

The Avatar is about to leave for a mission, one that he and his friends might never come back from, and he needed my advice as I was the only person he knew who had done something similar to what he is about to embark on. Harry knew that what I could say to him might save his life in the coming months, possibly years, as his mission unfolds. I can talk about it now as this work will be kept secret until the time comes for my work to be published and by that point the Avatar will have either succeeded or died trying. By that point, his mission will be declassified. Besides, it is a good way to set my own story.

As I write, the Avatar is traveling with his team of young, gifted, loyal friends to Ba Sing Se, though this is only a cover. From there, they will travel to the Imperial State of Golguth and in particular a secret prison there manned by Kyoshi Warriors. The prison holds a man who was once a, for lack of better term, brother in arms with me but made a deal with the Avatar for protection and may be one of only two men who can help Harry. I am the other man.

The reason why I can help the Avatar is simple; his mission is to sneak into the occupied Fire Nation and try and take down the deranged bitch who rules it with an iron fist. This is a critical mission for the Avatar as it the Fire Nation is out of balance and in need of saving and the only person who can do this is the Avatar.

As those who will read this will know, for the last 5 years, since the day of Voldemort's defeat at Harry's hands in the Battle of the Elemental Academy, the Fire Nation has been under the tyrannical and illegitimate leadership of Fire Empress Hermione the Cruel. Hermione is a girl who like me was seduced by extremist philosophies at an age when she shouldn't have ever been exposed to it but who unlike me never saw the error of her ways. Instead, she has been used by those who brainwashed and manipulated her into overthrowing the Firelord and the Fire Nation during a cowardly coup while the rest of the world's back was turned dealing with Voldemort. She has made her bed and will face the consequences if she is ever brought to justice.

Since her seizure of the throne, she has renamed the Fire Nation the Fire Utopia and imposed her far left views as the law pf the land. She has claimed the title of Fire Empress and given herself the epithet of 'the Savior'. My extremism was on the far right of the spectrum but extremism of any color is the same and Hermione has done a lot of what Voldemort did, just on a grander and institutionalized scale that Voldemort could only have dreamed of.

Hermione senselessly kills any who oppose her, she does not allow dissent, dissemination of ideas, disagreement, etc. basically it is her way or the highway. That is what Voldemort did and that is what I fled from and I ultimately broke my mind from those shackles. That is what I am seeking redemption from, my former etremist beliefs and the actions I took to further the Dark Lord's evil agenda.

However, my experiences with extremism, while useful, is not why the Avatar sought me out. No, the reason why he sought me out for aid with his mission is because when I defected from Voldemort, though admittedly still believed in the Purist philosophies I had been conditioned to believe in since birth, I did so while I was in the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation is not my homeland, I am not a firebender and before my defection in Fire Fountain City I had never been there, and for obvious reasons I have never been back since.

I did however spend two years wandering the Fire Nation countryside that I did not know, going from village to village, keeping my head low and avoiding the Purists and Death Eaters who were hunting me as a traitor while I did what I had to do in order to survive. It was during those 2 years that I saw the world for what it was, that I challenged and ultimately cast off my believes and where I began my continuing journey to redemption.

The Avatar needed my advice to help him figure out how to survive and lie low in a hostile environment that he has never been too outside of Royal Caldera City, and I am the only person he knows who knows how to do so that he could turn too for advice. The fact that it was the Fire Nation I did it in is an added bonus as I was able to give him some specific tips for areas that I had been in that he himself might be find himself in during his mission.

After I told the Avatar my story of my time there, he suggested that while he was away I write it down so that others may learn from my experiences and I agreed with him. That is why, for the first time, I am telling my full story from the very beginning to the point that I reached Omashu and settled down as a homeless man for 12 years before being rediscovered.

I will tell of my noble beginnings, my privileged upbringing, and my indoctrination into the Purist philosophy in general. Of how my brother, who is my role model for how he never bought our parents crap, was treated. And how I realized the full extent of Voldemort's evil and the lengths to which he would go for domination.

I will tell of how I defected, of my time in the Fire Nation, of how my views evolved views and how I came to realize how wrong I once was. I will tell of how I traveled from the Fire Nation to the Earth Kingdom after Voldemort's defeat to be near my brother in Omashu but how, out of shame, embarrassment and fear, I decided to not seek him out and would instead spend over a decade living as a nonbender vagabond mere yards from my only family that could understand and never sought him out.

I will tell of how was a wanted man with a death sentence on my head thanks to my father, I could not go to the authorities so I chose to live how I felt I deserved too at the time and for all that I have been through. As I have already said, I am glad I made that choice and would do so again in a heartbeat.

After that, my story is well known. It is common knowledge how the Avatar discovered who I was and who the homeless man whom he had shown kindness too in King Bumi Park was in fact a Death Eater who had defected and been labeled a traitor with a bounty on my head. Of how I was brought in, how I cooperated in exchange for a full pardon and how I fought alongside my brother, the Order of the Phoenix and the forces of good to defeat Voldemort, his Death Eaters and his Purists, even going so far as to defeat and capture my former fellow Death Eater Nott in single combat during the Battle of the Elemental Academy. All of that is public knowledge but what isn't in how I reached this point in my life and how I still believe that I have a long way to go before I am truly redeemed.

I am Crown Prince Regulus of the Norther Water Tribe and this is the story of my long path to redemption.

**I know the first chapter is short, the rest will be longer, but all it needs to do is set the scene for the upcoming story. This is the style that it will be written in with Regulus interacting a lot with the reader as he tells his cautionary tale with stories of his past interspersed within the general narrative that he weaves throughout his memoirs. Please let me know what you think of this spinoff in reviews/PMs, I try to listen to constructive remarks about what is good or bad about my writing. Until next week.**

**Stringdog**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is the second chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. There really isn't much to add here, just a reminder that the style is written as a first person memoir so there won't be much dialog and this is a first attempt for me so probably isn't as good as my other work. There are no questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the second chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.  
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**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 2**

I guess the best place to start would be at the beginning, or more accurately at the earliest I period I can actually remember, no one recalls their infancy well. For the sake of time I will gloss over my formative years, though I will make reference to them from time to time in this book and will do my best to explain those moments whenever they are needed to further the actual main tale that I am telling.

Suffice it to say that I was brainwashed from a young age into believing a certain particular set of beliefs to be the truth and all other views were lies. There is no if, ands, or buts about it, I was conditioned and brainwashed by my parents, and other noble pureblood Purists in the the Northern Water Tribe, from as soon as I could remember to believe in the purity of one's blood and bending lineage, in the supremacy of benders over nonbenders and purebloods over all others because of the nature of our births. This was the core of my education from a young age and it was drilled into my head every day from as far back as I can remember.

I grew up being told how and why purity made us stronger than everyone else, how it made us better, and why benders were naturally superior to nonbenders. I was told of how this was the balance of the world, how this was what nature had intended it to be and as such we were supposed to live in accordance with the natural order but that because of blood traitors and nonbenders had perverted this natural order since the end of the 100-year war and how that had thrown the world into imbalance. This had been made significantly worse by the actions of Avatar Korra and the blood traitor Amon.

I was told how benders' rights were now no longer a thing after the Equalist Movement, which to us had won despite the death of Amon and the end of their occupation of Republic City. I was told of how we were persecuted for being superior because of the masses of inferior nonbenders, something that was a perversion of the natural order and of how nature intended the world to be. Remember, the Purist philosophy boiled down to the strong took what they wanted while the weak suffered what they must.

I was told this by my parents, by their friends, by my teachers and eventually by my own Chief when Lucius rose to power while I was growing up in the Northern Water Tribe. Because of who was telling me, I lapped this shit up like a thirsty puppy. This is still one of my greatest regrets, believing this bullshit and it is this past that drives me to continue to seek redemption in the eyes of the civilized world.

Back then I believed every single word of their bullshit and of all my regrets, of all my actions and past beliefs, this die-hard conviction is what I am most ashamed of to this day. It is for this that I must redeem myself and atone for my sins. It is because of this I carry around a permanent mark, a scar or brand, on my body to always remind me of my foolish youth and of what I need to do to make up for those errors in judgement.

The only defense to this that I can mount is that I had no choice, I was doomed to this from the start, but this is not an excuse for holding the beliefs that I used to hold. It is also not good enough because my elder brother never succumbed to weakness of the mind the way I did, he never bought our parents' bullshit and pureblood lies but more on that later for I will detail my relationship with Sirius several times in my story whenever it is necessary to bring it up.

My name, my new title of Crown Prince in the aftermath of the Purity Wars, my heritage, and my past and present affiliations are all common knowledge so I need only briefly recap it here. I was born the second son and last child of then Councilman Orion and his wife, the pureblood lady Walburga, in the Northern Water Tribe. My blood, to use a term that I hate these days, is pure as both my parents and their parents and all the way back several generations are all waterbenders. Given my father's rank, I was born a noble, born into a sheltered, privileged, affluent household. I was also born into a bigoted, elitist and purist household in the most intolerant nation at the time, it was a recipe for disaster.

In hindsight I should have listened to Sirius whenever he tried to tell me to open my eyes, usually on our hunting trips with our uncle Alphard which were the only real times we were alone growing up but more on that when it is pertinent to my tale. Anyway, I should have questioned, I should have made my own mind up but I didn't. I was soft, malleable, easy to mold as I always wanted to please my parents back then. Sirius, by contrast, is several years older than me and had already begun to rebel by the time I was able to understand things so with me my parents double down on their brainwashing and social conditioning of me, all regarding the pureblood and purity bullshit, and unlike with Sirius, it worked on me.

It was because of this conditioning that by the time I left home for the Elemental Academy to enter the Water House, I was a full-on Purist. My time at the Academy would only further entrench my beliefs as I walled myself off from my brother and his trouble making friends because at the time I saw them as blood traitors. I hung out with only fellow Purists from all nations, all approved by my parents just as I was approved by their parents to ensure that our views were never truly challenged. During my Academy days I lived in an echo chamber, a safe space from invading ideas that could challenge my world view and show the problems with it.

In hindsight, it is not wonder I fell for the seduction of the Dark Lord's views. It is no wonder that I ended up joining the Death Eaters. I was primed for it from a young age and channeled down a path that was not of my own making. It is only after my defection and realization of the truth do I see that this was the case.

This is why I council students at the Academy who were raised in extreme environments or who are gravitating towards echo chambers, as well as working with former students locked up in various prisons around the world for siding with the Purists during the Battle of the Elemental Academy, to try and heal them from the abuse that they suffered growing up. Make no mistake, this is abuse in my mind but I have digressed, one day, after he is released and with his permission, I may write about my counseling of the former Crown Prince Draco during his time in the Catacombs Prison Complex but that is a story for another day.

I won't go into detail in this book about my time at the Academy, though if there is a demand I may write a work on my time as a student there as I am now a teacher in the Water House, as well about my efforts to counter extremism as part of my redemption. I will say this though, I was different from the other Purists in the Water House. Perhaps it was because of my cushy upbringing making me more sensitive than most Purists, perhaps it was because back then I was soft as my brother called, perhaps it was because of my uncle Alphard always taking me and Sirius out hunting during the full moon so we never abused bloodbending or saw the horrors that our parents and family friends inflicted upon nonbenders during those dark nights. Whatever it was, it ensured that I wasn't a thug, I wasn't a bully, I wasn't violent, I wasn't a fucking psychopath.

Yes I believed in the views of the Purists back then, I do not deny that, but I did not torment others because of my views or perceived sense of superiority as a pureblood waterbender. It is true that I saw myself as above them, as their superior who was born to rule them but I didn't use that to assault those I thought were below me, I didn't use it for my own pleasure like many others I knew did. Nor did I use it for my own personal gain. I just believed in the philosophy and thought that it was what the world needed to become balanced again and that over time everyone would realize.

What I did, and what I regret I did, was that I chose to ignore the warning signs that were around me. I don't know if it willful ignorance, youthful naivety or sheer stupidity I do now know, all I know was that I didn't see what I had gotten into until it was too late, when I was in too deep to back out. I just thought I was doing the right thing at the time.

The biggest moment that pushed me towards the path I ended up walking in my adolescence occurred the summer after my third year at the Academy. That moment was when my older brother Sirius finally broke after years of dealing with our fucked up, purity and bending supremacy loving, family and ran away at the age of 16. I had always been seen as the better son because I believed our parents' fucked up bullshit and Sirius didn't. It made him resent me because of my weakness and I have accepted that I deserved his resentment and scorn for what I was when we were growing up. All I can hope for is that he may one day truly forgive and the favoritism I had was no doubt one of the reasons why he ran away. That moment though, that moment was pivotal in my young life.

Sirius's decision to leave was seen by our parents, especially our domineering mother, as his deliberate abandonment of the family and his inheritance. Under Northern Water Tribal law at the time, this was considered a renouncement of his birthright claims and he was automatically disowned. Because of our station in the Northern Water Tribe, my dad also ensured that the Tribal Council formally banished Sirius from the Tribe for his actions brought dishonor to the family and the Tribe. Sirius would remain in exile from the Northern Water Tribe linger than I did, 20 years at least, and he would not return until after the end of the Second Purity War when he returned as Acting Chief. Anyway, Sirius' actions back then meant one thing, I was now the heir.

My father was one of the 5 Tribal Councilmen who advised Chiefs Desna and Eska of the Northern Water Tribe and who helped make law. At the time, the members of the Tribal Council were appointed by the Chiefs and like the Chiefs, the position was hereditary so I was now in line to take over as a Councilor when my dad died. This would ensure the tentative pureblood and Purist majority on the council alongside Abraxas and Lestrange, otherwise Sirius would have been on the council and shifted the balance. I was now an only child in the eyes of the law, entitled to all of my parents wealth and titles when they died.

Did I resent my brother for what he did? Sure, I resented him. He betrayed the family and his blood by leaving, at least that was how I saw it at the time, but he also left me alone to be further radicalized. I admit, growing up Sirius and I were never close but we did have a few good times. He taught me hunting, tracking, skinning and living off the frozen tundra up north, along with our uncle Alphard, all skills I would use years later as I fled Voldemort and the Death Eaters. What was worse, in hindsight of course, was that his leaving devastated the family and made them double down on me. I was already a lost cause, but perhaps with Sirius around I wouldn't have joined but fate has a way of ensuring we walk the paths chosen for us and this was my path, Sirius had his own.

Our mother took Sirius' betrayal the hardest. She was never the same again, not that she was particularly sane to begin with. Her deterioration wasn't out of a betrayal of love, mother had never loved Sirius, it was the shame and humiliation that he put her and our pureblood family through. Our family was, well still is but not in the same way, a noble pureblood family and Sirius leaving us and rejecting the ideology badly damaged our reputation in the pureblood community and in those days, family standing was the most valuable currency for the members of the elite class in the Northern Water Tribe. Had I not joined the Death Eaters and taken the Dark Mark we might never have regained our standing in the eyes of the other Purists and elites back home.

It was always expected that I would join the Death Eaters, in all honesty I didn't have much of a choice after Sirius left but I did join willingly when the time came. Growing up I believed the purist dogma like a religion above all else, that was how I and people like me were raised, something I am still campaigning against. My parents supported Voldemort, not openly of course but they did at home, because they felt that Voldemort had the right idea to put nonbenders in their place and restore bender supremacy and purity of our bloodlines. Naturally, I was a fan of his as well from a young age.

I remember that I used to collect news articles and other stories of Voldemort during his first campaign for ultimate power and pin them up in my room at home with pride, pride that I now know was misplaced. However, at the time, Voldemort was the hero for the purebloods and the benders, he would restore balance and lead us back to glory that had been stolen from us by Korra and her ilk. At least that was how it was told to us. The amount of lies that we were told were staggering but that is how a tyrant and bully like Voldemort and now Hermione operate, propaganda is a powerful tool used by those in power to trick the masses into supporting them.

By this stage, around the time that Sirius abandoned the family, the world was a few years into the first Purity War, though it was a shadow war. Between growing up in the Northern Water Tribe and living in an echo chamber at the Elemental Academy with fellow Purists, I was sheltered from the truth of the war. As far as I knew it, and all I knew was based on the propaganda that had been spoon fed to me by my parents and other older Purists, was that Voldemort was a politically persecuted hero for benders who was being targeted by the aggressive blood traitor Korra. How far from the truth I was kept.

I now know the truth, I know the full extent to which Voldemort committed great acts of evil but back then it was always portrayed as he was just speaking the truth and Korra was trying to silence Voldemort and his right to free speech. Free speech was something that we used to argue why our views should be heard but that we secretly opposed as it spoke of views counter to our own truth. However, we were even lied to about the origins of the war. Lies, deception, cunning, guile, these were the tools of Voldemort's trade and tools he tried to get me to use for my infamous mission. More on that in later chapters, when it is relevant in my story.

It is popularly knowledge that 11 years prior to Voldemort's defeat by Korra, he and a cadre of Death Eaters launched an ambush with an attempt to kill Korra and win the war in the first moments by removing the Avatar, the only person more powerful than Voldemort. Had it not been for the heroism and self sacrifice of Tenzin, who died by Voldemort's hand to save Korra, the war may have been over in a matter of moments rather than dragging on first for 11 years before the 14 year hiatus after Voldemort's defeat by Korra and its resumption almost 6 years ago.

However, we had been taught that the persecution of Voldemort, it was never called a war to me until after I became a Death Eater, had begun when Korra, her team, Tenzin and a few RCPD officers tried to illegally arrest Voldemort and his followers for speaking the truth. Not wanting to be silenced, Voldemort fought back and was able to escape given his prowess at bloodbending. In the scuffle, according to the reports I had heard, Tenzin was killed in self defense when he assaulted Voldemort and Voldemort falsely charged with murder. This was just one of the many lies we were told.

Over the following years, we were sheltered from the truth, or at least I was as I cannot speak for my former friends. I believe that this was because of my sensitivities and a belief that I would turn if I knew the truth, which I in fact did when the time came. It worked though, I grew up idolizing the Dark Lord and the Purist Movement, I bought their bullshit hook line and sinker and wanted to be part of it in any way I could be.

After Sirius left us, I knew that it was only a matter of time before I joined the Death Eaters and that day came the summer after my 5th year when I was just 16. That was the minimum age Voldemort would allow a follower to join and only if they could bring something of enough importance to the table that they could be granted Death Eater status and I could do just that. I was the son of one of the Councilmen to the Northern Water Tribe, I was the heir to that seat and the vast fortune which meant money for Voldemort's war and the promise of continued power of an entire nation that was already safely in Purist hands. I remember the day I received the Dark Mark like it was yesterday, that day is seared into my mind forever, both in pain and in hindsight, shame.

"Regulus, my boy, welcome home." My father said formally as I walked into our palatial ice mansion, called Grimmauld Place, in the most exclusive district in the Northern Water Tribe. The area was reserved only for purebloods, unofficially of course, and high ranking ones who were in the Chief's favor at that, so its easy to see the kind of environment I grew up in.

I had just returned from my 5th year at the Academy and was planning on spending the summer in the North studying the finer points of healing, my best discipline of waterbending even if it was seen as unmanly and frowned upon by my friends and family, as well as reading about Voldemort's latest struggles. So I was a little confused when I saw my dad upon my return because dad never greeted me when I returned, he was always too busy.

"Thank you father, it is good to be back." I replied with a respectful bow to him that he did not return but did nod at me. "The imbalance in the United Republic and especially at the Elemental Academy does get to be a little much so it is nice to return to my home nation where we understand balance and the need for purity and the rightful position of benders. I am happy to be around like minded people full time again."

"That's my boy." My father said giving me a rare smile. "You have been taught well, which is why it is time for you to take the next step in your life to help protect true balance, restore purity to this world and reclaim all the rights that us benders have had taken from us over the centuries. It is time you restore the honor of our family that your former brother took when he abandoned us. You are my heir Regulus and now that you are 16 it is time for the first part of your inheritance, the only part that you will get while I am alive."

"Father? What are you talking about?" I asked confused. I knew that I was now his heir but this was not what I was expecting from him, especially as I had no idea what the fuck my father was saying to me. "You know I agree with you unlike Sirius and I will do what is necessary to reclaim our family's honor and standing in society."

"Do not mention your former brother's name in my house again." My father admonished me. "But that is what I want to here. Now, come with me son, it will all be evident soon."

My father said as he turned and began walking deeper into the house, calling out as he began to walk away.

"Leave your bag, Kreacher will take it to your room for you. We have more important business to attend to."

I didn't know what my dad wanted but I did as he said, after all I was the good son back then. So, I dropped my bag so that the family's nonbender, indentured servant, something that was illegal under international law but was legal in the North at the time though it only applied to nonbenders and was not a publicly known law, Kreacher could pick up and followed him.

Dad led me towards his office, a place I was never allowed into as that was where he conducted most of his business, including the illegal shit. I was excited to finally see it but instead of going in he took a different door that led down to the basement. This was also new to me as I had not been allowed down to the basement of our mansion before either so I was still excited to see it.

The basement was where Kreacher lived in squalor under the heating system but at the time I was ignorant to the inhumanity of it, another on of my many regrets from growing up in such an entrenched Purist system. Apparently Kreacher loved it and was a willingly compliant nonbender with the Purists, one of the few opportunists who saw that while they would never be equal to benders, would be above their fellow nonbenders by accepting their place in society and helping us so that they could improve themselves at the same time.

I was also unaware that the mansion had a secret sub-basement beneath the basement where my parents abused bloodbending during the full moon. They, along with various other pureblood elites engaged in horrific, horrible, unforgivable, unspeakable and perverted acts on unfortunate nonbenders who wouldn't be missed that was legal under Lucius. I learned all this after my dad's arrest because uncle Alphard always made sure we were hunting on the tundra during the full moon whenever I was home, a tradition I kept after his death. My mother died during the 14 year hiatus between the Purity Wars so never faced justice for her crimes but my father was arrested during the Liberation of the North and is rightfully serving multiple life sentences with no chance of parole for his heinous crimes.

I digress. My father led into the basement and into an austere chamber that had been carved into the ice beneath our house and completed with an expensive stone floor that I could tell was heated by the melted ice around it. That was when I was greeted with the shock of my young life as well as an explanation for why we needed a stone floor.

Standing in the center of the chamber, dressed in simple, albeit expensive, black robes and a thick black winter cloak with the hood down was none other than Lord Voldemort himself. My hero, the Dark Lord, the hero of all benders in general and purebloods in particular, the restorer of our rights, the true crusader for balance, and the most persecuted and wanted man on the planet, at least as I saw him back then, was standing in the basement of my family's mansion waiting for me.

Next to Voldemort was one of his highest ranking and most loyal Death Eaters, though that was not known at the time to the wider world due to the Death Eaters needing to protect their identities from those who would persecute them for their views, but a known Purist, Rabastan. I knew of Rabastan because of my dad and his connections. Rabastan's elder brother Rodolphus was the Second Councilor, the position behind my father in seniority.

Rodolphus and Rabastan were the kids of a noble and hereditary Councilor called Lestrange who had been one of three purebloods on the council that had elevated Lucius to Chief a few years back before he passed away and their blood was as pure as mine. The only odd thing was that Rabastan was not a waterbender but an earthbender as his father had married a pureblood, purist, earthbender and the only child of a sympathetic noble while stationed in Ba Sing Se as our Ambassador to the ISEK prior to inheriting his position on the Tribal Council.

This made Rabastan earth nobility as he was an earthbender while his elder brother was water nobility, the only family ever known to have both. It was clearly a marriage for political and purity reasons but it had worked and produced heirs to two noble families.

Anyway, with Rabastan present that meant that he was only present as a truth seer, an ability he was known to possess in the Purist circles but nowhere else. That was confirmed by the fact that he was not wearing any shoes, hence the need to have the floor heated, but otherwise was dressed in the finest green winter robes that an earth noble of his wealth could afford.

I was hero struck by being in the presence of the Dark Lord and one of his most faithful, fanatical, and loyal followers and it wasn't until my father prodded me forward did a begin to walk towards them. Slowly I walked until I was a few feet away from them and just stood there dumbly waiting for whatever they wanted. I was nothing compared to these two great men, at least at the time, standing before me and I didn't know what I was going to do.

"Regulus, a pleasure to finally meet you." Voldemort said to me in his cold, high pitched voice, his bloodshot, almost red eyes, boring into mine as he stood perfectly still in front of me. "Your father has told me a lot about you. He's told me how you are a believer in our noble and righteous cause to bring balance back to the world through restoring purity and establishing bender supremacy as dictated by the natural order of things. Apparently you are also a big fan of mine and a supporter of my goals. Is this true?"

"It is, my lord." I said hesitantly still star struck by being in the presence of the Dark Lord. I continued after Voldemort glanced at Rabastan who confirmed my true words with a nod. "You, you are a hero to benders everywhere and to us purebloods in particular, the hero the world deserves. You, and you alone are willing to actually preach the truth of purity, of benders rights and of the need for bender supremacy in order to restore balance to a world that has not known it for centuries, despite many Avatars claiming to be working for that same goal. You fight for what is right, regardless of what Korra says to the contrary. How can any self-respecting pureblood bender not admire and support you and your noble and righteous mission."

"He speaks the truth master." Rabastan said quietly. "He firmly believes in our cause and what is right for this world. I sense no deception or lies in his words."

"Good, that is what I like to hear." Voldemort said with a thin smile that was chillier than the room I was standing in. "Now Regulus, what would you say if I offered you a chance to join me and my fellow crusaders of balance, purity and bender supremacy by restoring our natural rights as benders? What would you say if I offered you the chance to become one of my Death Eaters?"

"I would be honored to become a Death Eater." I said instantly, knowing that it was the truth at the time as my heart rate began to pick up in anticipation of the offer that I had just been made.

I had supported the Dark Lord for years and believed in all that he stood for, so I would gladly fight by his side and restore the world to the balance I thought at the time it needed. Still, I was only 16 and unproven and I showed this insecurity by glancing at my father who was still there but standing behind me and away from us. Voldemort realized this.

"Your father is too old now to join." The Dark Lord said to me, his voice never changing from its cold high pitched nature. "But you can join in his place given your own age, family heritages and blood purity. Usually I only allow men, and in very, very, rare cases women, join the ranks of the Death Eaters if they meet certain criteria. That is, they are proven loyal to me and my views, do not question me or my views, follow my orders to the letter, and bring something additional to the table. That addition could be airbending as airbenders rarely follow my correct views, money to fund my cause, and/or a position of power that can further my righteous mission. In your case Regulus, you bring money as the sole heir to one of the richest and purest families in the Northern Water Tribe, and you bring power as a future councilman, so long as we plan out a career for you to take while your father continues his own supportive role of me on the Northern Tribal Council. Your father has already proven his loyalty and support over the years and I am willing to mark you as a Death Eater so long as you report to me about the goings on at the Elemental Academy that you learn of over the next few years and that you follow me as any other Death Eater would. Can you do that Regulus?"

"I can." I replied firmly after Voldemort had finished his long recruitment speech to me, not that he needed it at the time given my already blind support for his cause. "If you accept me as a Death Eater today, I promise you that I will be loyal, faithful, and serve you as you restore balance, purity, benders rights, and in the end bender supremacy to the world. I will do my father proud and restore our family's honor after what my blood traitor, former, brother did to us."

"He still speaks the truth master." Rabastan said quietly.

"Good, then he is ready." Voldemort said looking intently at me. "Kneel before your new master Regulus and kiss the hem of my robe."

I did just that without any hesitation. I knelt down on the heated stone slabs on the floor, bent forward in supplication to the Dark Lord and kissed the hem of his robe. I was awash with nervous excitement, at last I was about truly serve the Dark Lord as one of his most faithful and loyal supporters. At last I was about to become a Death Eater.

"Stay kneeling." Voldemort ordered and I did just that, kneeling on the floor with my head bowed in front of the Dark Lord. "Regulus, pureblood waterbender and only son of First Councilman Orion of the Northern Water Tribe, do you hereby swear your undying loyalty, fealty, and service to me, the Dark Lord Voldemort till death take and do you accept my authority as the only authority required in the world today."

"I do." I said truthfully as I kept my head down in reverence to the Dark Lord.

"Do you swear to honor the tenets of purity and bender supremacy as in keeping with the natural order." Voldemort said.

"I do." I repeated.

"Do you swear to serve you fellow Death Eaters loyally and faithfully by maintaining the anonymity that I require of them so that they may further the Purist Movement without fear of being caught and wrongfully punished by the illegitimate authorities." Voldemort said.

"I do." I said one last time as I sold my soul to Voldemort.

"Then rise young Regulus and extend to me your left forearm." Voldemort said after a pause that I knew he had used to confirm with Rabastan that I was being truthful.

I did as the Dark Lord ordered. Carefully, Voldemort rolled up the sleeve on my left arm up to the elbow. Then he placed a long, cold, pale, finger right before the crook in my elbow.

"I hereby make you a Death Eater, the loyal followers of Lord Voldemort and my designated leaders in the world I intend to make." Voldemort said as he pulled his finger down to just above my wrist. "Serve me well Regulus. From this moment on, I am your master."

There is no way to truly describe the pain that ensued as Voldemort marked me. I knew that he was a bloodbender of a caliber the exceeded even Amon's if the stories that I believed back then were true. All Northerners during the Lucius Chiefhood were taught that bloodbending was not supposed to be illegal and that in time, if we were loyal, we would be allowed to use it as often as we could because it would become legal. What I did not expect was the fact that Voldemort did not need the full moon to bloodbend, thus proving the truth of the stories to me, or the pain that it would cause me. Though to my credit, I did not utter a sound as the Dark Lord gave me his Dark Mark.

I had been bloodbent before, my father used it as a punishment during the full moon when I was too young to go on the hunting trips with uncle Alphard and Sirius, and that was painful enough. What the Dark Lord did to me was way worse. He bloodbent something in my arm, likely the capillaries near the surface of my skin, to permanently scar me with a black mark of a skull with a serpent for a tongue. It was known as Voldemort's Dark Mark, the symbol of a Death Eater. The pain lingered for days afterwards and still to this day occasionally gives me a dull throb.

To this day I do not know how Voldemort created his Dark Marks, nor do I know how he managed to do so in a way that could never be healed but he was such a skilled bloodbender that I doubt it could be replicated. Whatever the case, the creation of the Dark Marks was a secret that Voldemort took to his grave 4 years after Avatar Harry defeated him.

Regardless of how it was made, the purpose of the Dark Mark was to mark us, so that we knew who we served and that when he rose to full power, we would be his lieutenants and his most trusted, faithful, followers who ushered in the new age of unbridled peace and balance to the world. I was finally part of them and I was just 16 years old.

"Welcome brother." Rabastan said embracing me when Voldemort had stepped away. "Welcome to the Death Eaters."

I did not know that that was the first of several moments that would ultimately change my life forever. At that moment I still did not know the truth or extent to which Voldemort would go to achieve his goals. I honestly did not know anything really as I was just a kid. All I knew was that I was that at that moment in my life, I truly believed that I was on the right side, the side of justice, truth and righteousness. I thought that I would be serving the good of the world as we made it a better place. I couldn't have been more wrong.

**This is probably one of the longest chapters in this spinoff story, and a major reason why I ended up increasing my total chapter count by at least 1 as I had originally planned more for this chapter. I have steadily distributed the excessive stuff over the next few chapters to bring the story back in line with my outline. Anyway, as with any spinoff, especially one set prior to the events of the first story in the main series (Book 1: Purity), this spinoff will show things alluded to, or glossed over in the original series such as the recent scene with the Dark Mark, as well as highlighting different and new characters who may or may not have appeared in the original story. Regulus himself only appears as an actual character in 3 chapter of Book 1, has a non speaking role in 2 chapters in Book 2, and one appearance in the upcoming Book 3 (that's as much spoiler as I am will give), though he is referenced several times. That's enough for this chapter note, the next chapter will see Regulus talking about his time as a Death Eater prior to his fateful mission and introduce the preamble to said mission. Let me know what you think in your reviews and as with all my other stories in the universe I will answer any questions from reviews or PMs at the start of next week's chapter. Until next week.**

**Stringdog**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here is the third chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. Sorry that this is a little late, my schedule is kicking my ass at the moment so my uploads will likely be a little late for a few weeks. Like last week there**** are no questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the third chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 3**

For my first 2 years as a Death Eater I was still at the Elemental Academy so I was sheltered from their actual activities and as such I didn't know how evil they truly were. Also, there wasn't much for me to do while I was at the Academy that could truly further our goals. I wasn't useless however because I was effectively a spy for Voldemort and his cause and information is crucial in the shadow war that was going on at the time between Korra and Voldemort. I was a pretty good spy I think.

My age, my calm and non-aggressive demeanor, and refusal to sprout my extremist beliefs from the rooftops the way other Purists did helped a lot in my task of finding out information, of course I didn't think my views were that extreme. In furtherance of my role as a Death Eater I always keep my ears open when I was at the Academy, especially around the teachers known for their opposition to Voldemort such as High Chair Bolin in his last year before stepping down and resuming duties as Head of the Earth House, High Chair Albus during his first year in the job, Masters Minerva and Jinora, and other masters who opposed the ideologies that I believed in back then.

Any info I received, and I received a fair amount that had to be pardoned by President Shacklebolt, was passed onto my contact to go to Voldemort. What happened with that info I never truly knew but I shudder to think of what a man like Voldemort's spymaster did with the info I passed along but it is a guilt that I know I will carry for the rest of my life.

Obviously it was too risky to actually pass on the information directly to Voldemort given the persecution against him at the time, a persecution that I realized later was justified given his crimes, so I had to pass on what I knew to a middleman. Normally I would pass on the info to a contact in Hogsmeade that was a sympathizer to our cause. My main contact was some shady dude who ran one of the stores there, who is now serving 27 years in prison for his actions.

When it came time for my report, I would drop them off in the store and they would get back to the Dark Lord, however this was not always the case. Every now and then, about once a month, I would give my report to a fellow Death Eater in person. That Death Eater was always the Dark Lord's mysterious spymaster.

With the spymaster, we never met in the same place twice. Sometimes it was out in the bay away from the Water House, sometimes on the slopes of the mountains to the east of the Academy, sometimes south of Hogsmeade, and sometimes on the plains north of the Air House, but never the same place twice and there was no pattern to our locations. All that would happen was that I would get a location from the spymaster, always in code, telling me where and when to meet him. I never figured out how he got the messages to me but he always got them to me in a way that no one else noticed.

I knew that the man was the Dark Lord's spymaster because he said so and it was common knowledge amongst the Death Eaters that the one identity that was solely known by the Dark Lord was that of his spymaster's. In addition the spymaster was noticeable by the fine white gloves, occasionally spotted with blood, that he always wore.

It was an honor, at least at the time, to meet the spymaster as he was so crucial to us, our operations, and keeping the Dark Lord one step ahead of those who were persecuting him. That was why whenever I gave him a report it was a major one that went straight to the Dark Lord for his evaluation of what to do with the info.

When it came down to meeting the spymaster, I always had to wear a hood and make sure that I wasn't followed when I met him but I never covered my face with a mask like he did as he already knew my identity and affiliation as part of his position within our ranks. All I knew about him was that, based on his accent and mannerisms, he came from noble stock and based on the cut of his robes and the fine white gloves he always wore, he had a lot of money. I didn't know his bending or nation, though I could tell he wasn't from the Water Tribes or Air Nation, and I didn't care, he was a direct link to the Dark Lord and I always gave him my reports on time and made sure that they were very detailed.

I would find out during the Second Purity War, after I returned to the wider world, that the spymaster was a man called Lord Pyrites. He was an apparently a Fire Nation pureblood noble who held moderate views and as such had been hiding in plain sight until his discovery by the  
Avatar. I was informed of his arrest by my brother, though his identity was not released publicly until after the war ended, as well as his extensive cooperation and lenient sentence and I was shocked to learn who the spymaster had been.

Pyrites is currently one of the few Death Eaters still alive as he was caught alive and is serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole in an undisclosed prison but if my talk with the Avatar is any notion of what to expect, Pyrites might be free sooner rather than later due to his help with his mission in the Fire Nation. I can write this classified info as this book will, if it ever is, be published after the Avatar completes his mission in the Fire Nation and the details will be declassified.

This is just an overview of what I did during my 2 years as a Death Eater at the Academy and who I was dealing with in that time period. There really isn't much to what I did, it was mainly keeping my ears open and writing down anything I overheard to allow those who understood the value of information decipher it to see if any of it was useful.

My first years as a Death Eater weren't interesting or horrific, that would come later. It is the next stage in my life as a Death Eater that I will cover in this chapter as it will cover the meeting and acceptance of the mission that would change my life forever, as well as the first doubts that I had that I was truly following the right path for the world.

* * *

After I graduated from the Elemental Academy I was unsure of what I wanted to do other than that I wanted to do something to further help the Dark Lord, my fellow Death Eaters and those who believed in the Purist philosophy and its implementation. As such, I felt, and my dad would agree, that the best course of action would be for me to go to law school so that I may advance in that world and be of aid to the Dark Lord, the Death Eaters and our allies.

It made sense as it was the only field in which we did not have a strong presence, I could easily become a sympathetic judge for our cause or take over from Yaxley as the Chief Judge of the Northern Water Tribe. With my future decided, all that was left was where should I study.

The idea of where I should study was Chief Lucius's and my dad agreed with it, as did the Dark Lord. I would study law at the International School of Law, the only law school dedicated to international law. It has campuses in all nations but it was decided that I would study on the Foggy Swamp Campus because it was isolated, near the Dark Lord's base in the Swamp, and seen as neutral enough so as to not arise suspicion as studying on the campus in the Northern Water Tribe would.

It would also enable me to be moved into a powerful position like Chief Judge of the Northern Supreme Court while my father still lived before I took over the council seat and free up Yaxley to take a different role. It was a standard backroom plan to further bolster the power that the pureblood elite had in the North, this was normal practice in the North until my brother became Chief.

In addition, I was to have an official job that I would hold in conjunction with my studies, that of Diplomatic Attaché to the Northern Water Tribal Ambassador to the Foggy Swamp Tribe, or as we called it the Foggy Swamp Colony as neither it nor the Southern Water Tribe were ever recognized by Lucius' Chiefdom as an independent nation. The reason for this was because the job would give me diplomatic immunity and a steady income while I was in the Swamp, as well as a sense of legitimacy whenever I did anything. It was a good plan and one I was looking forward to starting. My job wasn't going to last long.

Our Ambassador to the Foggy Swamp Tribe at the time was a noble pureblood about 15 years my senior called Winickus. As with all of the most prestigious jobs, the Ambassador was a Purist pureblood of noble stock and was the first born so Winickus was no exception. Due to his family not being wealthy or senior enough to garner Death Eater status in a nation that was oversaturated with candidates, Winickus was never going to get a better ambassadorship.

On addition, though he lobbied for it, his family would not be granted the recently freed up seat on the Tribal Council following the 'accidental' hunting death of one of the two moderate councilmen and his only heir. That seat went to a Death Eater called Nott who I would later capture during the Battle of the Elemental Academy.

However, despite Winickus not being able to climb the social ladder any higher than he had managed to climb, he was still a pureblood Purist and a noble which got him his Ambassadorship and all the perks that came with it. Still, that didn't mean that he wasn't an insignificant ally to the Dark Lord. As an Ambassador, Winickus had diplomatic immunity and access to intel that not even Pyrites could get through normal contacts and Winickus had no qualms in abusing his position to further our cause. As such he was considered one of the highest ranking Purists.

Also, as will all many waterbenders who were Purists, Winickus abused bloodbending during the full moon and engaged in numerous other illegal actions including bribery, blackmail, extortion, perjury, rape, and murder. Due to his diplomatic immunity, Winickus was able to get away with a lot, including the rape and murder of a young nonbender from the Foggy Swamp Tribe as well as the murder of her whole family which led to him getting caught but released due to his immunity.

This incident happened after I defected but it is known that Lucius refused to strip Winickus of his diplomatic immunity and he remained in his position. This caused an incident and Winickus' reputation was tarnished to the point that he had lost a lot of use outside of being a loyal Purist but he retained his valuable post that would come in handy when the Foggy Swamp was taken by Voldemort on the day of his return when the Second Purity War began.

While I know many who read this will not believe me but it is the truth when I say that I had no idea of Winickus' actions or depravities while I was stationed in the Foggy Swamp. Back then I was naïve, idealistic, and willing to believe my side over all others, regardless of the rumors, speculations and stories I had been told. I just thought that these were smears against a loyal Purist, nothing more. I know now how wrong I was and regret never stopping him in my brief time under his employ.

For those curious, Winickus survived the war having been appointed by Lucius as Governor of the Foggy Swamp Colony following the fall of the tribe in the aftermath of Voldemort's second declaration of war. As Governor, Winickus oversaw the instillation of Lucius' Purist Laws into the Foggy Swamp and all that those laws entailed. He also maintained his Ambassadorship and diplomatic immunity though it was no longer recognized outside of the territory controlled by Voldemort during the war.

Winickus would remain in the Swamp until the end of the war when he was overthrown by the United Forces in the immediate aftermath of Voldemort's loss of bending and capture. Winickus' position and location allowing him to evade capture during the Ledger Raids that occurred after Pyrites betrayed Voldemort, though the evidence in the ledgers was more than enough to confirm Winickus' guilt and complicity in Voldemort's regime.

Due to his high positions and willful cooperation in crimes against humanity, Winickus was considered a high value war criminal who needed to be taken alive if possible. In fact he was captured alive by Admiral Williamson of the United Forces following the stabilization of the United Republic and the beginning of the Purist Cleanup that took place in the wake of Voldemort's final defeat.

My former boss was convicted of numerous crimes against the Foggy Swamp Tribe under tribal law, as well as international crimes against humanity and war crimes, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Due to Winickus' status as a Purist and not a Death Eater, the Foggy Swamp decided not to seek the death penalty as no Death Eater had received it so felt that he shouldn't be executed if none of the surviving Death Eaters were. Instead, Chief Tobias handed him over to the White Lotus following his convictions.

To this day, my one time boss is serving his life sentence in the White Lotus Waterbending Supermax Prison's specialty bloodbender wing. He will die in that cell, a fate that many believe is too kind for the unspeakable crimes that Winickus and many other high ranking Purists committed but that is a debate for another day.

That was the kind of man that my boss was but I didn't know it at the time. At the time I was just a law student and an attaché to Ambassador Winickus. I didn't understand the current situation or how deep in I was until I volunteered for that fateful mission mere months into my tenure in the Foggy Swamp.

As with the day I became a Death Eater, I vividly remember the day I volunteered for a mission personally requested by the Dark Lord at a Death Eater meeting, as well as the aftermath later back at the embassy. That was the day that my innocence was ended and the day I realized how deep in the shit I was and how few options I had to get out of the situation I was in. That was the day I realized the truth of what it meant to be a Death Eater and to pledge your life in service to the Dark Lord. I still relive that day in my mind over and over again, the nightmares it caused will likely never go away.

* * *

It was a muggy night, something that was normal deep in the Foggy Swamp, when that fateful meeting happened. I had arrived early as it wasn't hard for me to get there, all I had to do was sneak out of the main village of the Foggy Swamp Tribe without being noticed and then take a swamp boat that I had stashed for this very purpose to the area before being walking the rest of the way to the secret location of the Dark Lord's hideout.

The base at the time, which was moved after Voldemort's first defeat, was located within the Foggy Swamp Tribe's borders but right at the western edge, near enough to the United Republic that it wasn't too hard to reach from there. Only Death Eaters were entrusted with the location, as well as a method of communication via Dark Spirits that alerted us to meetings, and I had only just been told the location and was looking forward to my first full Death Eater meeting, it would also be my last.

Anyway, I got there early and took my seat at the carved wooden table that served as the meeting point for the Death Eaters. As one of the most recent members, I sat right at the end as I had been instructed to so upon arrival but I didn't care, I was one of them and that was all that mattered.

Over the course of about half an hour, almost all of the Death Eaters showed up and took their assigned seats. According to Pyrites following his capture only changed when a Death Eater rose of fell in the Dark Lord's favor. Otherwise a seat was vacant when a Death Eater was dead, absent or incarcerated, though at the time it was only absent Death Eaters as none had yet died or been arrested.

The only ones missing were ones who couldn't make that particular meeting were Death Eaters who could attend due to their positions making it too hard for them to secretly travel to the Foggy Swamp. These were Death Eaters Rookwood, Karkaroff, Selwyn and Rowle who's positions were highly scrutinized and their absence would have been noticed, as had been my case while I was at the Academy. With my father not being a Death Eater, he was able to remain in the North to run things so that the other councilmen and Lucius could make the meeting under the guise of a diplomatic trip to the Foggy Swamp Tribe.

Once the last person sat down, a twitchy, podgy man with watery, fearful, eyes under his mask who sat opposite me and who I had never seen before, Voldemort himself arrived and sat down on the carved throne at the head of the table. When he called, we all answered unless he specified that we remain in position, as I did during my school days, but there wasn't much formal bowing and kissing his robes here. We were all his loyal servants and the meeting had to start right away so no need for formalities. With Voldemort seated it was time to begin.

"My faithful Death Eaters, thank you for coming to this important meeting." Voldemort began in his high, cold voice and we were all instantly listening to our master's every word. "I know that it is a hard task for some of our more influential, powerful, and well-connected members to attend, hence why there are some empty spaces amongst us, but you are here and that is what matters. We have a few matters to address, but first I have a new Death Eater to introduce to you, as well as another Death Eater who has been unable to make it to our meetings for a few years due to his position as my primary spy within the student body at the Elemental Academy."

This caused a buzz as many had been looking at me and the other newcomer at the end of the table. This was my first time at the Dark Lord's base and it was my first full meeting so my heart swelled with pride at being singled out by the Dark Lord and praised for being his primary spy at the Elemental Academy. The man opposite me however look terrified to be there and I was unsure as to why he was even here, he didn't strike me as Death Eater material.

You had the be a cut above the rest to bear the Dark Mark and this man struck me as a pathetic weakling but he was here. That meant that he had something that prized him enough in the Dark Lord's eye to be marked. Soon I would learn why the man was here and that info would eventually prove to be the first step towards a pardon and redemption after Sirius found me.

"The first new Death Eater joined our ranks a few years ago and those who know him already know what he has been doing for me and why he hasn't been able to attend until now." Voldemort said indicating me. I was a little self-conscious being the center of my fellow Death Eater's attention but I was still proud to be there and to be singled out by the Dark Lord. "He has served me well as a spy for us within the student body of the Elemental Academy and provided me with information on the masters there who support the blood traitor Korra. This has allowed me to keep one step ahead of them over the last few years in regard to a few of my important operations. Now he joins us full time and will in time become one of my faithful and most useful Death Eaters."

There was a smattering of applause at my actions, some nods and the man next to me, I think it was an airbender called Mulciber, but I can't be sure, roughly slapped my back. It felt good to be wanted and accepted amongst my brothers at the time. It would be the one and only time that this happened or that I ever felt this way.

"As for the other new Death Eater, he really is a special one who I have to thank my spymaster for turning to our cause, not an easy task." Voldemort said once my greeting had died down and he pointed at the other new member to our group while ignoring the spymaster who sat innocuously in the center of the table. "Wormtail here isn't a great firebender, or much of anything that would normally be considered useful enough to join the ranks of the Death Eaters, but he has one key use that has allowed him to join us. He is a trusted member of the Order of the Phoenix and has become the first member to turn on those blood traitors, see the error of his ways, and join our righteous and noble cause. He will be my badger mole in the Order, so his identity will remain a secret from everyone and he will report directly to me."

There was an even larger outcry of support for this newcomer, Wormtail as he was apparently called, mainly because he had given us what we had been looking for for years, an inside man in the terrorist organization known as the Order of the Phoenix. The order had been a thorn in our sides for years as they preached antithetical views to our own and attempted to oppress benders in general and Purists in particular whenever possible. To turn one of their own was a big coup for us at the time, course we also had a turncoat a little while later and didn't realize so they kinda balanced each other out.

I am ashamed to admit that I cheered along with my fellow Death Eaters at this development given its significance to us at the time but I also noticed that the watery eyed man opposite me looked very unhappy at having to report to Voldemort. That surprised me for I idolized the Dark Lord at the time and didn't realize how evil and tyrannical he actually was, that fact was about to change very quickly.

"This brings me to the reason why I have summoned y'all here today." Voldemort said as soon as the cries had died down. "As you all well know, for the last 9 years we have been engaging in a shadow war with the forces of imbalance and oppression. The Purity War as we call it for the outcome will decide if we can preserve purity of our bloodline or see purity destroyed forever. Almost all the world leaders, along with the blood traitor Avatar have rejected my correct views on purity, balance and benders rights, and have stopped at nothing to try and end our cause. It is only through my loyal Death Eaters, sympathetic Purists and a vast network of informants that I have managed to maintain my freedom and my life, and that we are slowly winning this war. Mark my words we are winning."

"It is all thanks to you master." A cold, cruel female voice that I instantly recognized as my cousin Bellatrix's cackled from her seat right next to Voldemort as several Death Eaters cheered at the Dark Lord's statement. She was the only female Death Eater I knew by name though I knew that there was at least one other female Death Eater. "Your wisdom and power have seen us through this war. You will ensure that we win and restore purity and balance to the world. With you we will once again rule supreme as nature intended it to be."

"Yes, I have and it is from my own wisdom and advice from trusted members of this council that I have come up with a plan to shift the balance of this war further towards us." Voldemort said with a grin on his pale face. "We are winning the battles but we are not winning the general public, that is about to change. I have a plan, a mission that one of you must undertake for me, that will shift the balance of the war irrevocably in our favor."

I was completely thrown for a loop. I had no idea what Voldemort meant by war. As far as I knew he was nothing more than a political activist who was being viciously persecuted by the world powers. There had been no mention of anything more than us being a politically oppressed group and that oppression was because the rest of the world couldn't see the truth and wisdom in our beliefs.

I hadn't realized that we were at war but given the fact that it seemed that the leaders of all but the Northern Water Tribe and a select few Imperial States were set on ending our views I could believe that we were in a war of sorts. Course as I rationalized this during the meeting, I still thought that it was a just political war and not an actual war, short of a few illegal attacks on our supporters that was but again I had chalked that up to the forced oppression of us. Again, that was something that would change that day.

"What is your plan master." A gruff, harsh voice said from near enough to Voldemort to indicate a favored Death Eater and pretty senior, though I didn't know who it was. I would learn later that it was the most prolific executioner in Earth Kingdom history, a monster who took perverted pleasure in killing called MacNair. "I am more than willing to do what is needed to achieve victory."

"I know that you are my faithful servant, but alas this is a mission that does not required your unique skills." Voldemort said shaking his head. "I need you to remain where you are, your position is perfect to gather intel and to help end many animals who dare to challenge benders. This mission requires someone with a different skill set."

"I understand master." The man said bowing his head in respect to our master. "I will continue with my duties as directed, the do give me great pleasure. It is an honor to serve you."

"Pleasure in one's work is always a good thing." Voldemort said with a nod. "For this mission I do not need an axe, but rather a scalpel. I need someone who can travel undetected, with limited or no restrictions, and who is not known for their association with me or the wider Purist Movement."

I don't know if Voldemort was asking me directly to undertake this mission or if he was just looking for Death Eaters like me who fit that mold but his requirements fit my current status to a tee. Given the Dark Lord's reaction and directions after I volunteered, I have a feeling that I was the intended perpetrator all along.

Regardless, I knew that this was my chance to prove myself to the Dark Lord and show that I was worthy of the Dark Mark. That was why I volunteered, at least I think that is why I volunteered as I don't actually remember deciding to do so before I did.

"I'll do it." I said, I didn't realize at the time that I had spoken up but I had. "I would be honored to undertake this mission for you master."

"Yes, you are perfect for this mission." Voldemort said as he looked at me before glancing at the man in the white gloves sitting in the middle of the table. The spymaster gave an almost imperceptible nod and Voldemort continued. "You aren't known as a Death Eater or even suspected according to the Death Eater I have placed within the RCPD, who couldn't be here tonight as he is busy framing some animals in the United Republic for the murders of blood traitors. Plus, your current position allows you to travel without limitations, hence why it was secured for you."

"Whatever it is, I am at your service my lord." I said with utter conviction in my voice.

I still didn't know what Voldemort wanted but I would do it if it helped our cause. I know it was blind obedience but that what I had been brought up on. It was both a blessing and a curse that I accepted but more on that when the time comes to tell of what I would be asked to do and the conclusions I would eventually come to.

"That is what I want to hear." Voldemort said with a thin smile at me that filled me with pride. "When you return to your current abode, head to the Embassy, there you will receive the details of your mission from those who have been informed of it. You are going to help make the world a better place for benders if you succeed and you will help sway the tide of this war so much in our favor that we will be unbeatable. Do not fail me, Lord Voldemort does not accept failure."

"I won't fail you my lord." I said with certainty.

I knew when I spoke those words that I would succeed, it was what my master wanted and therefore it had to be good. How naïve I was back then. How wrong I would ultimately be but at the time I couldn't see the future or what would be asked of me. Had I known, I would never have volunteered for the mission.

Voldemort nodded at me to acknowledge my words before continuing with the rest of meeting. If I am being honest, I don't really remember much of my only meeting with all the Death Eaters. I was so happy to be able to actually make a difference that I didn't pay attention to what the other plans were or the developments had been, all I cared about was that I was trusted with this important mission.

Had I paid attention, I might have learned a few more things that would have tipped me off to the horrendous act I would be asked to commit in the name of balance, purity and benders rights. Alas, I wasn't thinking about that at the time. I had other things on my mind during the rest of that meeting.

Back then I swore that I would not fail my master, at least that is what I had planned. All I could do was wait until the meeting was over so that I could return to the Embassy and find out what my mission was. I never even questioned why Voldemort had directed me to the Embassy after seeking a volunteer. Though I cannot be certain, I have a feeling that I was meant to be the Death Eater sent on this mission all along.

I probably should have asked more questions and pressed for more details back then, but that was never Voldemort's style. He liked to keep things compartmentalized, that way if one of us was caught we couldn't give away all of his plans to our many enemies who I was told would torture them out of us. Only his spymaster, who had told me about the torture during my time at the Academy, ever knew the full extent of the Dark Lord's plans.

I should have pressed though. Had I known what was in store for me and how it would change my life forever I wouldn't have accepted the mission but I also wouldn't have stopped it so perhaps it was all for the good.

I now believe all things happen for a reason and in this case, I was meant to be on the mission, I was meant to question what I was being asked to do, and I was meant to take the course of action I did. Of course this is hindsight talking, I am a much different man now to the boy that I was that day in the Foggy Swamp.

However, back then all I could do was wait impatiently for the meeting to end so I could return home and learn what my mission would entail. I would do the Dark Lord proud or I would not return for I would have failed my master then. I didn't realize how true that was until much, much later.

**Regulus' journey down the rabbit hole has just began, soon he will learn what he is about to have to do for his cause and will face the toughest question of his life. Winickus, as with many characters, is a name drawn from the Harry Potter Wikia sight so there is precedent for his name and yes he was a Slytherin. He will feature in the next chapter so he does make an actual appearance in this spinoff (and might return in the lost adventures series or a spinoff that details the Purist Cleanup). That is all for this chapter, as always please le me know what you think in your reviews and as with all my other stories in the universe I will answer any questions from reviews or PMs at the start of next week's chapter. Until next week.**

**Stringdog**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here is the fourth chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. While this week is only slightly late, I cannot promise next week will be on time as I have to work on my other active fic this week for a special release in that fic. N****o questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the fourth chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 4**

The time has finally come to talk about that infamous mission. I have been putting this off for a few chapters but as it is the core of my journey from naive Purist and Death Eater to wherever I am now, it needs to be addressed and done so in as much depth as I can remember. The details of what I was asked to do have become public record in the years since I returned to the wider world from my self-imposed punishment and aided the Avatar in defeating Voldemort once and for all. However until this book I have not spoken about the actual mission assignment, what went down, why I did what I did, and how I actually felt at the time. All that I have said, even in my classified reports to world leaders and the Avatar, has been what the mission itself was and not what actually happened when I was informed of the mission in the Foggy Swamp.

This chapter of my journey to redemption will look at the interaction I had when the mission was handed to me, what I was ordered to do, and my immediate reaction to it. My conclusions and feelings will not play a part just yet, that is still to come, but the conflict was there from the moment I learned the true details of the mission I had volunteered for.

I guess I had already started to have doubts after the Dark Lord's references to a war I had never heard of but the meeting I had where I was given my mission and the materials was truly the moment when the questions and conflict within me about what I was doing and the side that I was on began. That being said, it was still a a while before I began to question my own views regarding purity, benders rights, and bender supremacy.

It was right after the Death Eater meeting that I learned the nature of the mission I was to be sent on. I returned home to my residence to deposit my clothes from the meeting and change into a standard, smart, and expensive set of clothes cut in the latest fashion of the Northern Water Tribe. I was going to be talking with a high ranking Death Eater, at least I assumed that, so I had to look good. After that I went to the embassy to receive my mission, still not knowing what to expect.

I was greeted at the door by one of the staffers who worked for Ambassador Winickus. I hadn't been around long enough to know all of the staff but this was a swampbender and sympathetic half-blood waterbender if I recall correctly but his blood status made him less than me so I ignored him. I wasn't carrying anything so he didn't need to take anything from me, just led me into the embassy and up to the top floor of the large, elaborate, wooden structure that was our embassy in the Foggy Swamp. To this day it is still the largest structure in the Foggy Swamp tribe, as well as the most expensive.

Instantly I knew where we were going. We were going to the Ambassador's office. This meant that the mission had something to do with my job as a diplomatic attaché and that the Ambassador was involved. Good. It meant that it was a serious job. I was looking forward to it, I had been waiting 2 years to prove myself and standing in front of the Ambassador's office I knew that my time had come.

"This is as far as I go." The staffer said to me in his thick swamp tribe drawl. "The Ambassador is expecting you. Knock, he is waiting for you."

I waited until the staffer was gone before knocking on the wooden door of the office, everything in the Swamp was made from wood which had taken a while to get used to. I only had to wait a few minutes before a cultured, educated voice told me to enter. I opened the door and entered Ambassador Winickus' office for only the second time, and the last, in my life.

The first time I had been in the office was when I was hired so that the Ambassador could make sure that I was a Death Eater and let me know the situation in the Foggy Swamp in respect to my position and studies. He was my boss but he knew the situation and respected my position so long as I listened to him on things regarding the embassy, something I agreed to. He was also one of my contacts for any info I got from the swampbenders around my own age that I had already begun to ingratiate myself with as a few I had known at the Academy and I wanted some new friends in the Foggy Swamp. I was still constantly keeping my ears open for new info that could aid our cause.

The office was lushly appointed, at least as lushly as it could be given the quality of building that could actually be built in the Swamp. The floor was covered in the finest hand made carpet that had been imported from the North. The furniture was made with the fines woods that could be gathered from the trees in the Swamp and upholstered by the best company in the United Republic. Everything stank of wealth, as was the tradition of those in power in the Northern Water Tribe. Wealth was a symbol of pride and a measure of status in the Northern Water Tribe and Winickus had gone all out in showing his wealth in his office.

Along the walls were many trophies from Ambassador Winickus' hunting trips. Unlike most nobles, Winickus was one of the few who enjoyed hunting and he had taking his best trophies from the Northern Water Tribe, the Foggy Swamp, and the surrounding Earth Kingdom states so that he could display them to his guests. It was an impressive display of skill though I doubted that Winickus had hunted fairly.

Still, I could appreciate this. One of the few things I had ever bonded with Sirius over growing up was hunting, much to our parents' chagrin. We had one out onto the tundra and hunted for hours or even days when Uncle Alphard was present, with Sirius secretly giving the meat to those who needed it whenever he could. By the age of 12 I knew how to kill, skin, git, clean, and all that shit.

I was never as skilled as Sirius at tracking or stealth, there was a reason why he earned the nickname Padfoot after all, but I was the only non seismic sense user who could tell when Sirius was approaching me from behind, a secret I will never tell him. I didn't know at the time, but my skills in hunting and perception would soon save my life during my many years on the run.

Still it was nice to see the trophies, even if I personally wasn't the biggest fan of taking anything from an animal that could be used but that was how I had been raised. I had done some hunting with the other swampbenders in my months in the Swamp and it was they who had taught me how to fish in non frozen waters. Still I hadn't been on a truly good hunt yet but I couldn't wait, it would be a good time to get to know the other young adults in the Swamp. However, at that moment I had a mission to receive and apparently the Ambassador was my contact for the mission.

Ambassador Winickus was a large bull of a man standing well over 6 feet tall and rippling with muscles from constantly working on his bending and strength. His long, red hair fell down almost to his waist and was tied in a single braid that was tightly woven with a light blue ribbon down his back. His beard was also long and thick, thicker than most from the Water Tribes, and gelled to a point and tied off with a ribbon. His robes were of the finest quality and handmade in Republic City to the latest fashion trends.

However, knowing that the Ambassador was in on it was not the surprise. No that was reserved for the other man in the room who was lounging on a plush sofa along one wall underneath a tapestry of himself being crowned Chief and drinking a fine wine out of a topaz encrusted platinum goblet, the wine was likely a very expensive brand from one of the finest vineyards in the Fire Nation. Chief Lucius was present as well, this meant that the mission must be serious. Now I was really excited for my mission.

"Close the door." Winickus barked and I did so, the thick wooden door ensuring that no one could overhear our meeting and the room swept for recording devices daily. "This meeting never happened, remember that."

"Winickus, Regulus is a loyal Death Eater to the Dark Lord, he knows about secrecy and that what we say is off the record." Lucius said casually as he took a swig from his goblet. "Besides, both of you have diplomatic immunity and I have sovereign immunity so it doesn't matter regardless. That is why he is perfect for this mission and we are the perfect people to explain it to him."

"I know, I am just being cautious for your sake Lucius." Winickus said with a sigh, his position giving him clearance to not have to refer to Lucius' title while addressing him in private. "You don't have diplomatic immunity here and while you have sovereign immunity, it might get sticky given what we have to discuss now."

"Yes well, I am cautious and besides, they need a lot of proof to accuse a world leader of serious wrongdoing outside of his home nation." Lucius said with a chilling smile I had never seen on him before, though admittedly I hadn't spent much time with my Chief in my young life up to that point. "And when they do, they will have to send Korra after me as she will be the only one with the authority to strip me of my position and arrest me and we all know that isn't going to happen, not with out allies and spies in place to prevent it. She is too busy hunting down the Dark Lord and hating that unlike her other foes, Voldemort has lasted longer than a few months at large. So long as she doesn't realize that I am a Death Eater I am golden."

"True, true." Winickus said nodding as I just watched the exchange, it confirmed my belief that the North was fully behind the Dark Lord even if we couldn't publicly say so. "Then I just have one question; how far does Regulus' diplomatic immunity go? I know he is immune here but what about the other nations? This mission, that I have only just learned about mind you, isn't in the Foggy Swamp so it might not apply where he is going."

"Regulus, you are the law student, care to enlighten your Ambassador as to the precise nature of your diplomatic immunity." Lucius said turning to look at me before adding. "And you aren't a Death Eater Winickus so you don't need to know of the Dark Lord's plans unless they require your position and authority, which this is one such plan."

"I am technically a diplomatic attaché to Northern Water Tribe and not the Ambassador to the Foggy Swamp Tribe, so I am considered an attaché-at-large." I said instantly rattling off one of the first things I had learned after my appointment to this position before the Ambassador could respond to Lucius' statement. "I have been assigned to our embassy in the Foggy Swamp Tribe due to my attendance at the International School of Law's campus located in the Foggy Swamp. However, I can travel to any of our other embassies or consulates and perform my duties there as I do here. As such I have general diplomatic immunity similar to our cultural Ambassadors-at-large."

"Ah, that is useful." Winickus said with a smile calming down from his earlier annoyance and settling into the conversation placated by my position. "You are right Chief, he is perfect."

"That he is." Lucius said with a curt nod. "He will do the Dark Lord proud, won't you Regulus?"

"I will." I said with pride, I was going to make the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters proud on this mission of that I was sure. "Can I actually learn what the mission is? I am eager to set off on it but I do need to know what I am being asked to do. I trust the Dark Lord but I need to know what it is I am doing for him and why my diplomatic immunity helps."

"That's the spirit boy." Lucius said with another swig of wine. "The mission will begin in a few days and everything you need to carry out the mission is already onboard the airship but you need to know what you are doing and this will be the only time you are told as you leave as soon as possible. You will also need this."

Lucius reached into his robes and pulled out a scroll that he handed to me to read. It was official and bearing his seal and was orders directing me to go to the Fire Nation to inspect on the status of our consulate in Fire Fountain City for a few days. I would be traveling on an official airship. The reason for the trip was that Lucius suspected that the consular there was corrupt in some way and I was to use the Pro Bending league match between the Fire Fountain team and the Arctic Foxes, Lucius' team, to conduct my inspection. As part of my cover, I was also ordered by my dad to be his representative at the game and his signature was on the document as well.

It was all very official and gave me perfect reason to be there. I was excited because I was a fan of the Arctic Foxes, I had even done a little competitive bending at the Academy with my team reaching the semifinals my last year, so I was looking forward to being able to watch them play from the away team owner's box. Plus, I had never been to the Fire Nation and was interested in seeing it and learning about it first-hand. Still I had a few questions regarding what exactly I was supposed to do for the Dark Lord at a pro bending match.

"Chief, this is a great opportunity and one that I am really looking forward too." I began as I rolled up the scroll and tucked it into my robes. "But I don't see why I have to do this. Couldn't you send someone form Ambassador Cygnus' office in Royal Caldera City to conduct the inspection? My uncle is probably more suited to this as he would know more about the situation."

"True Cygnus would be good but he is busy in the Capitol doing noble work for his nation and the Dark Lord's cause." Lucius said dismissively. "Besides, with you it looks like an independent inspection and not an internal audit from our diplomats within the Fire Nation."

"I presume that this is just a cover, a convenient alibi for me for what I am actually supposed to do." I said looking first at my Chief and then at Ambassador Winickus. It was the only explanation for the document I had been given that I could think of. "Right?"

"You are correct, your father always said you were a smart boy." Lucius said with a nod and I smiled at the Chief for his complement. "In fact it was your father who suggested that this be used should you ever have to do a mission like this. The assignment is a cover so that you can use your diplomatic pouch to transport what is officially listed as material pertinent to our consulate there but will in fact be containing something very different. As a diplomatic attaché and the sole designated courier for the pouch, you will be immune from inspections by the Royal Fire Nation Border Control as you know and the pouch cannot not be searched. It is already packed with what the Dark Lord needs it to be packed with and only you have access to it so that we can ensure it gets to its destination. The item is already built so there is no assembly needed and the code for the safe where the bag is being kept is in the stateroom that you will be in in the airship."

"What is in the pouch?" I asked curiously. Clearly the pouch was key to the mission and I was impressed with the cleverness of the Dark Lord's plan to use a diplomatic pouch to smuggle what he needed into the Fire Nation. "I assume that it is something we don't want the blood traitors in Iroh's government to see but I feel like I should know what I am transporting."

Now what I was expecting it to be propaganda material about Purist philosophies that I had been told was banned in the Fire Nation or something one of the firebending Death Eaters there needed but couldn't get in via normal means. I was not expecting what Lucius said to me next, his one-word answer caused the first major fissure in my devotion to the Dark Lord and the Purist Movement, it deepened the crack that the war reference at the meeting earlier that day had caused.

"Bomb."

I knew my mouth was open and I was gaping at my Chief but at that moment I didn't care at all. The Chief of the Northern Water Tribe, the leader of an entire nation, and one of the most loyal and high-ranking Death Eaters, had just ordered me to transport a bomb on an airship to the Fire Nation using my diplomatic credentials and pouch to get it through customs and ensure that it reached its destination. It was not what I was expecting and I didn't know what to say. This was not what I had signed up for two years prior, nor was it what I thought I was signing up to do.

Fortunately, Lucius took my stunned expression as one of shock at the balls of the move rather than at the horror of it which was my initial reaction. However, I was horrified at the plan. As far as I knew, we were political actors being persecuted by those who didn't understand or realize the truth of our beliefs, not terrorists and murderers. We only killed in self-defense and only as a last resort when the authorities tried to silence us and our beliefs, or at least that was what I had been told. I was already in deeper than I could have ever imagined and it was only going to get worse from here.

"Yes it is impressively bold isn't it." Lucius said with a smirk to which I could just nod, I couldn't let my Chief know my true feelings about this plan. "The Dark Lord and his mysterious spymaster came up with it a while back but it has taken a few years to get everything in place, and for the situation to become such that this plan is needed. The bomb is small but deadly and is perfect for what we need it to do. It is made from entirely handmade materials, no bending at all went into the making of the bomb, and is in keeping with the latest Equalist designs for their explosives. In fact, it was actually created by a cell of Equalists in the Fire Nation who are known to oppose us and our righteous cause but have been duped into aiding us by the spymaster himself. Already there is a trail of clues leading to them and they believe that they are the ones who are going to pull this off and take credit for it. The plan is foolproof and just what we need."

"May I ask what it is you want me to do with the bomb?" I asked once I found my voice. It took every effort to keep my voice neutral and level as I spoke with Chief Lucius.

I was horrified by the use of terrorism but I knew better than to show doubt, fear, or hesitation in this conversation. If the Dark Lord wanted this to be the plan then who was I to question his wisdom after all. I was going to do a mission for the betterment of our cause and blame it on a group of terrorists who hated bending and wanted the weak to rule the strong, back then I thought that they would deserve the punishment that they would get from the bomb going off. Of course I wasn't expecting what the true extent of the mission would entail.

"Plant it of course, that is what you do with a bomb." Winickus said as if I was stupid and reminding me that the Ambassador was in the room as well.

"Regulus knows that, I think he wants to know where to plant it and why." Lucius said and I again just nodded in agreement. "A fair question in my book. Regulus, the Dark Lord wants you to plant this bomb in the stadium before the game. You should be able to gain access as your inspection includes looking over the stadium to see if it is being used for clandestine meetings between our consular officers and unsavory elements of Fire Nation society. You will plant it underneath the owner's box for the Fire Fountain City Flamey-Os. There is a remote detonator which you will use when the camera for the VV pans over to the owner and his family. As you know, you will be in the away team's owners box as your dad's representative due to the team officially being owned by the Tribal Council and you can use the VV feed there to detonate it when the camera pans over to Lord Montague and his family."

"The owner of the Flamey-Os, isn't he a known Purist?" I asked confused. While I was not familiar with Lord Montague, I knew that he was part of the Purist contingent on the Fire Assembly that advised Firelord Iroh and one of our key allies in the Fire Nation who wasn't a Death Eater.

Now I was definitely shocked and horrified, I was being asked to kill innocents in the name of the Dark Lord and then blame it on our enemies. It was low, it was cowardly, it was downright evil and I wasn't sure if I wanted any part of it but I had volunteered and this was critical to the Dark Lord so I knew I had to do it. I had expected that the bomb would be used to target a known Purist group when no one was there so that no one died and that it looked like the Equalists were attacking us. I had not been expecting to target a packed stadium in the middle of a pro bending match.

This wasn't what I had signed up for but I wasn't sure of a way out. What made it worse though was the fact that the owner of the Flamey-Os was a Purist and a vocal supporter of our movement when so many weren't so I was killing one of our own for what I saw as no reason.

"Lord Montague is a Purist and a loyal and outspoken supporter of the Dark Lord and Purist philosophies." Winickus said in response to my question. "Which is why he is perfect. He has repeatedly called on the Fire Assembly to try and get the Firelord to pass laws cracking down on nonbenders, removing the rights that they have stolen from us, and on banning the Equalists but to no avail. The Firelord is a blood traitor and won't listen, he is more concerned with freedom of speech, association and thought than he is with preserving the rights and privileges of benders or the fact that nonbenders must be subjugated beneath benders. However, if the Equalists kill a known Purist in a massive and public display, as well as his entire family including his recently born grandson all of whom will be in attendance, along with a good few Fire Nation citizens, then the Firelord will be forced to act. It will force Iroh to go after those animals and our allies in the Fire Assembly can capitalize on the tragedy to bend the Fire Nation to our ideas at last."

"It will turn public approval onto our side at the very last." Lucius said with a malicious grin at the idea while also tempering Winickus' higher expectations. "People will see these animals for what they are, subhuman filth fit only to be ruled by us sophisticated and powerful benders just as nature intended it to be. They attacked and killed an entire pureblood family in the midst of the one thing that brings benders and nonbenders together while not caring about who else died in the explosion so long as a known and highly influential Purist died at their hands. It will bolster our support and turn average benders to our side as they will finally realize the truth of what the animals are capable of."

"But, but we did it." I pointed out finding my voice again and keeping it as calm and neutral as possible given what I had just been told. I knew better than to question my orders but I had to understand why we were doing this and the sudden shift in our movement's actions.

"Yes, it is called a false flag attack." Lucius said with a nod. He apparently didn't realize my hesitation at the time and interpreted it as admiration or curiosity at the plan and was eager to brag about its brilliance, a trait that many Death Eaters had when it came down to their plans. "We make it look like the Equalists did it and even they will believe it when they publicly claim responsibility for it, via the spymaster of course. It will finally get public support on our side. We have been debating this for years in the war that we have been fighting against the Avatar and those who support her imbalance but it was only after the recent stalemate that we have been locked in that the Dark Lord has been willing to use this idea. Naturally he is hesitant to spill the blood of benders, especially pureblood like Montague's, but now he knows that it is the right move to shift the public to our side and win the war once and for all as public support is what has been hindering us in this war. We need to win the public and this is our only way to do so, by painting our enemies as the animals and monsters that we already know them to be."

"Killing our own, our fellow Purists and purebloods is the right move?" I asked still trying to understand why we needed to do this.

"In this case it is." Winickus said seriously. "Regulus, we are war with those who wish to subject us to their myth of equality, who wish to take away our rights as benders and dilute our bloodlines, you know that. War is bloody and sometime good people like the Montague family must die for the greater good. They will be honored when we have won and their sacrifice is noted but it is also needed. In war there are always sacrifices and sometimes we must sacrifice a few to save the many. A few of our supporters will die but it will be for the betterment of all in the end. You aren't having doubts now are you?"

"No, no doubts Ambassador." I said quickly picking up on the ominous tone in Winickus' voice at the end of his statement and in that moment I did not doubt that he would attack me if I showed any doubts in this mission. "Just trying to understand why."

"Relax, Regulus is young and new, he doesn't understand tactics and strategies of war." Lucius said placating Winickus. "According to his father he is a student of law, politics and philosophy, not war and the nuances that go into waging a war against a foe like the Avatar and the public that support her dangerous views. Regulus will learn and he will be doing a great service to the Dark Lord and our cause going forward. Once he succeeds, he will be rewarded beyond his wildest dreams and forever known as the hero who ensured our victory in the Purity War."

"He'd better." Winickus said looking at me sternly. "The Dark Lord isn't known for his forgiving nature, especially when it comes to a mission of this magnitude and importance."

"He knew what the consequences for failure were and what he was getting into when he signed up." Lucius said simply with a reassuring smile at me. I actually didn't know the consequences but I could imagine given Voldemort's ability to bloodbend and what appeared to be the extreme lengths the Dark Lord was willing to go to in order to win this war that we were in. "Now that about covers it, any more questions Regulus?"

"No." I said honestly. "Other than when do I leave you have answered my questions."

"Tomorrow afternoon." Lucius said instantly. "The airship is docked in the nearby Imperial State of Gaoling as it is too large to get into the Swamp and there are some resupplying needs that will take most of the night to complete. You will take an official diplomatic boat to the edge of the Swamp and then a satomobile to the airship. You should be in the Fire Nation in a few days which gives you plenty of time to prepare for the mission and plant the bomb where the instructions in the bag with it tell you to plant it. Do not fail us, the Dark Lord, the Death Eaters, your father, your nation and your whole race are all counting on you to succeed. If you do, you will help tip the balance of this war irrevocably in our favor."

"In that case, I would like to return to my rooms and pack." I said with a smile that felt forced. "I have to prepare for this trip and I should be well rested. I will not fail you Chief, nor will I fail the Dark Lord."

"Good then take your leave, the Ambassador and I have personal business to discuss." Lucius said giving me a dismissive wave with his hand. "He has a few things I might like to look at before I return to the North."

I didn't notice the look of lust in my Chief's eyes but it was almost certainly there given what I would learn happened whenever he was visiting the Foggy Swamp. I was too busy seeing myself out and heading home to pack and think about my mission and the murders I had been asked to commit, murders only I could commit given my diplomatic immunity. I had a lot to think about and not a lot of time to do so.

* * *

The next afternoon I was in the spacious suite on the luxury airship that served as one of the official diplomatic aircrafts that the Northern Water Tribe had. The suite also which had the additional information that I would need in regards to my diplomatic pouch so I was set for my mission.

I was sitting in the lotus position in the small meditation chamber in the suite that I had been given. I hadn't had time the night before to think about everything that had happened as I had to pack for my trip so I needed to do it now while the airship was heading to the Fire Nation, it was the only time I would be free to do so.

It wasn't common for Northerners to meditate and commune with the spirits or to just meditate in order to have a moment to do some self-reflection. After Chief Unalaq's actions prior to Harmonic Convergence it had become taboo for a while but was coming back and it was something that I personally enjoyed doing. I was always good at the spiritual side of waterbending though I could never admit it as it was seen as unmanly in the North to be spiritual or to be able to heal, the latter I could also do pretty well for a guy, so that was why I had turned to meditation in response to what I had been tasked with doing in the Fire Nation.

Right now I had to do it to get my thoughts in order. Calm self-reflection meditating wasn't working but I knew what would. I knew what was the next step I had to take in understanding what to do about my mission. I had to seek out neutral advice and there was only one place I felt I could get it without it being biased or leaking out to the Death Eaters. I had to enter the Spirit World and seek the advice of the spirits about what to do next.

The advice I got would further deepen the cracks in my beliefs that the mission had started and ultimately send me down the path to redemption. Course I didn't realize that at the time, at the time there was only one thing on my mind, it was time for me to enter the Spirit World.

**That is the mission. This was mentioned in Book 1: Purity when Regulus was talking to Sirius but this is the mission in its entirety. The planning and idea for this mission, as well as the planned aftermath and reactions of Voldemort to Regulus' actions, is set to be an arc in the second book in the planned Pyrites spinoff tetrology series, currently under the working title 'The Memoirs of Pyrites. Book 2: The War Years' but that is a long way off. Winickus will return in either the special Avatar: The Tale of Harry. The Lost Adventures or in a potential spinoff 'The Purist Cleanup' and it will address his arrest. The next chapter will be out sometime next week and I'm sure y'all can guess what it will entail by how I left this chapter off. That is all for this post chapter note, let me know what you think in your reviews and any questions or concerns will be addressed at the start of the next chapter. Until next week.**

**Stringdog**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here is the fifth chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. Sorry for the off week, I had to release a special chapter for my other active fic to mark its one year anniversary, I am back to the regular schedule for this series. N****o questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the fifth chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 5**

I had known that I would have to seek deep within myself to find the answers I needed, I just hadn't known that the Spirit World would be that answer until I had begun to meditate. I was conflicted and honestly I had been ever since the Dark Lord had referenced war in the Death Eaters meeting, the mission parameters had just exacerbated that conflict. It just hadn't been until I took a moment to breath and think about it all did I realize how deep the conflict within me was.

I had always been told that our views were right and that all other views, especially those that contradicted ours, were wrong. I had never once tried to question them, I had gone along with the dogma as if I was a brainwashed child, which in hindsight I was and to this day is something I deeply regret not doing. I know I should have questioned my beliefs but until this moment on the airship, I had never had a reason to do so.

My brother had always seen through the lies that our parents and their friends had told us, but I hadn't until after I began my life on the run. I had self-segregated myself at the Academy and me and my friends had formed an echo chamber of ideas, similar to what Hermione would do over a decade later with her Chosen. In that echo chamber, something I have campaigned against since my return to the civilized world, we fed our own beliefs and reinforced them as truth because we weren't challenging them in the slightest. That include the propaganda we received, it helped fuel our beliefs and our assurance that they were the correct views of the world.

We had always been told that the powers that be, which back then was Avatar Korra, Firelord Iroh, King Wu, Chief Septimius and then his son Arthur, and President Minchum were lying about or falsely portraying our beliefs as evil and trying to silence them. The lies that we were told were staggering in hindsight but in my youth that was all I was exposed too so that was what I believed to be true. It was a cleaver and devastating system.

We were told that Voldemort was the only one bold enough to try and ensure that our correct and true views were implemented in the world where the majority believed Korra's lies. We were told that Voldemort was unfairly targeted for it and persecuted for his beliefs but that he was doing it for the benefits of all of us.

We were told that the deaths and violence that we did hear about were being spun by the fake news media that was controlled by Korra and her cronies, mainly her wife Asami, to show us in a negative light as the aggressors when we were actually acting in self-defense. We were told that the Purists involved in the occasionally violent struggle had always been attacked and had defended themselves, even when the evidence was overwhelmingly against them. I had always believed all of this propaganda, spin and at times blatantly fake news, and then that meeting and the mission happened.

The meeting had opened the crack in my beliefs, I know that now though at the time I wasn't sure what was going on inside of me after hearing the Dark Lord at that meeting. I had never expected us to be at war, let alone being at war for at least 9 years by that point, just that our views were persecuted by the blood traitor establishment. Still, I could rationalize it as a euphemism, a figure of speech, right?

Being at war didn't actually mean literal war did it? We would always use it as a term for when we were in conflict with an opposing force. It was just something people said that's all, at least that was what I initially thought.

Back in the North, Sirius and I would use it when we went hunting if there was a certain pest species that we needed to thin the numbers of and we had to actively fight to get rid of them. At school we would use it for our competitive bending matches against tough opponents. We used it for trivial matters because it was a good saying that made sense in certain situations, it was a joke or a rallying cry that was all.

That was why, by the end of the meeting, I had convinced myself that the war Voldemort was referring to was more of a culture war, a political war of beliefs between the false ones sprouted by Korra, the Order of the Phoenix and the other governments, and the correct ones sprouted by us. It was a war of ideologies and one that I believed that we would win. I was also pleased to be doing a mission for the Dark Lord and one that was so important it would shift this culture war in our favor for good. It was that mission that turned the initial crack into a fissure.

The mission objectives had confirmed my worst fears, fears that I had buried and persuaded were unfounded during the meeting. The mission showed me that we were in the midst of a literal war between us and the Avatar and those loyal to her. It was all a sudden and shocking revelation to me.

We had been fighting a shadow war, a real war, for almost a decade and I hadn't realized. Now I was being asked not only to be a part of it but to shift the balance of the war irrevocably in our favor. All I had to do was kill a bunch of innocents, many of whom supported our side and avowed Purists loyal to the Dark Lord, and pin it on our enemies and then we would be winning. This wasn't what I had signed up for 2 years prior.

Honestly, I had signed up because I believed the philosophies of the Dark Lord, they made sense to me back then even if I now understand how fucked up they were, and believed that Voldemort, and Voldemort alone, could lead us to victory and restore true balance to the world. However, I thought that it would be done by political maneuvering, speeches, campaigns, and examples showing the world that the only true balance was benders ruling over nonbenders, with maybe a little propaganda thrown in for insurance. That was how I thought we would win the ideological battle that we were in.

I believed back then that the rights of benders had been trampled and at times destroyed by the proponents of equality in order to achieve the precious false equality that they preached. I believed that purity of bending blood was the best way forward and that benders were the superior race. I thought it was obvious and that over time the rest of the world would see the truth so long as we kept campaigning and refused to be silenced. We were right and eventually the world would see that

I was wrong about everything pertaining to our struggle. Not about my beliefs, that revelation was yet to come and would take a lot more hardship for me to realize just how fucked up my beliefs had been. No, I was wrong about our tactics and strategies. We were at war, we were effectively terrorists. We used violence to achieve our political and societal goals and that is why the Death Eaters, and later groups like the Enlightened and the Chosen, are considered terrorists and rightfully so, we met all the criteria for terrorists. I had been too naïve before, now I had an internal conflict to deal with.

My problem was that I wasn't sure if I wanted any part of this mission so I was conflicted about what to do. I knew that I had to succeed in this mission or else I would at best be exiled, disowned, and left without any support. All things that effectively happened to me in the end anyway when I did make my decision but it could have been a lot worse.

It was in that moment that I realized, given the extremes that Voldemort was willing to go to in order to win, I would likely be killed by my own fellow Death Eaters if I failed. I also knew that I could not go to the authorities and tip them off about anything that was about to happen because the spymaster had made clear to me that he had contacts in all agencies around the world so I was fucked on that front as well. Also if I went to the authorities the Voldemort would know the truth and I would be killed within days and I would need time to disappear before the Dark Lord realized I had failed him if that was the path I was going to take.

I was left with a choice that I never thought I would have; kill dozens of innocents, including children, babies, and allies, or abandon my mission and try and survive on my own, something I had never done before. I knew that it was a choice not to be made lightly, which was why I intended on using the trip to meditate and figure it out.

To that end I had decided to look deep within myself in search for answers to the predicament that I was in. All I found when I did reach deep within myself was a conflict between what I thought was morally right, that is not killing unless it is in self-defense and advocating for our views the correct way, what was philosophically right, which at the time was the Purist philosophy that I believed in, and what was the right thing to do in general, which I didn't know. I know the right thing would have been to abandon the mission then and there but my loyalties and the conditioning I received growing up were in so deep that they were clouding my judgement.

As such, the deeper I looked the more I realized that I needed advice from someone else and that the best place to go was a place that did not care for the actions of humans, the Spirit World. I had on several occasions visited the Spirit World, though I had never admitted it to anyone I knew, so it was no problem for me to calm my breathing and in moments I felt my spirit transcend into the Spirit World. I did not know what to expect when I opened my eyes, I just knew that the Spirit World would have taken me to where I needed to be.

There is no way to describe the feeling of transcending into the Spirit World. One moment you are looking inside yourself to find your inner spirit, the next you feel like you are no longer connected to your body and that is when you know that are in the Spirit World. Taking a breath and not knowing what to expect, I opened my eyes and blinked furiously in the bright light in the of the Spirit World I had found myself in.

It took a few more minutes for my eyes to adjust to the light of the area in the Spirit World I had ended up in. I had spent enough time either in or studying the Spirit World to know the main locations on sight and in the distance I recognized Hai-Ryu Peak. I had ended up on a grassy plain of sorts near the base of the peak and near a small stone house with a wooden table outside and a few spirit trees and some large pink bulb plant thing. I had no idea where I was in the Spirit World other than near the peak of a famous mountain nor did I know why I was here but this is where I had been sent so it was time to find out why.

I stood up and brushed myself off, not that I needed to as you didn't get dirty in the Spirit World unless you had a corporeal form, and then stretched out of reflex of spending so long in the lotus position. Walking to towards the building I was surprised to see that the table was set for two and facing one another and complete with cakes and other snacks for afternoon tea. As I approached an old man in long green robes of an Earth Noble and waist length gray hair and beard exited the building with an old pot of hot tea he was carrying by its wooden handle.

"You look lost young man." The man said to me in a kind but slightly gravelly voice. "May I be of some assistance to you?"

"I, I think I was meant to find you sir." I said respectfully bowing to the older man who looked slightly familiar but I couldn't quite place him. "When I entered the Spirit World I found myself here."

"And what were your intentions when you entered?" The old man said as he set down the pot and took a seat at the table.

"I, I needed some advice and I couldn't get it from meditation alone so I entered the Spirit World to seek out that advice." I said sheepishly, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting when I entered the Spirit World.

"Then you must have tea with me, I insist." The old man said kindly, gesturing to the spare seat at the table which I took after a moment of hesitation given the oddity of the situation, even by Spirit World Standards. The man began to expertly pour the tea and continued talking. "I had a feeling this morning that I would need to lay two places at today for afternoon tea so I did. The Spirit World always works in mysterious ways. I have been here for decades and I still do not know all its ins and outs. I do know though that if you were send here upon arrival then we were meant to meet so let us have some tea and chat."

"Well if it is the will of the Spirits, who am I to fight it." I said with a smile as I raised my cup and gave the old man another formal bow of respect before drinking his tea. It was jasmine tea and by far the best I had ever had and I had to drink deeper before finally adding. "Damn, that is some good tea."

"It is one of life's many little joys, a fine cup of well-made tea can really soothe the soul and help make sense of one's world." The man said with a warm smile st me as if he had done this a thousand times before, which I would learn many years later that he had. "It also helps clear the mind and put one at ease when they are in conflict and you look like you are in conflict son."

"How, how did you know?" I asked as I put the cup down and accepted a piece of cake from the man.

"It is written on your face." The old man said with a monetary hint of sadness in his old eyes. "You have seen or been exposed to troubles a man of your age should never experience. You look just like my nephew did many, many years ago when he was about your age I would guess. Of course, his conflict was great and it almost consumed him but he made the right decision in the end. However, as you are wearing Water Tribe robes not Fire Nation so there is some difference between you two."

"Wait." I said as the info finally struck me as to who I was talking to, the little clues had finally all added together into the bigger picture. "Iroh? As in former Grand Master of the White Lotus, Fire Nation General and Prince and uncle to the legendary Firelord Zuko, Iroh, right?"

"I am one and the same." Iroh said with his kind smile and slight bow of his head. "I have helped many people in both my life on earth and in the Spirit World over the decades, and it appears that I am here to help you as well. The Spirit World seems to have decided that you need my advice so who are we to ignore the will of the universe. Why don't you tell me what your problems are young man. You look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders?"

"In a sense, I do." I said with a sigh. I knew I couldn't tell Iroh everything but I had to give him the broad overview of my predicament so that he could advise me on what to do. "Or at least a portion of the world, only the Avatar can truly have the weight of the world on her shoulders."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Zuko had the world on his shoulders as well." Iroh countered. "Especially in the aftermath of the 100-year war but that is not for here or now. Please continue my boy."

"That is true, I am not as well versed in that history as I should be." I said with a slightly sheepish smile that got a light chuckle out of Iroh. When he didn't add anything I continued. "I guess the main thing is that I have begun to question, not necessary my beliefs as I still believe that they are correct, but more I am questioning the methods and actions of those who stand for them with me. In particular, I am questioning what they are willing to do to achieve our goals and whether or not I can partake in those actions, even though they go against my moral conscious."

"Ah, the Death Eaters?" Iroh asked. "I am starting to suspect that they are the ones who you are talking about."

"I would rather not say who." Regulus said hesitantly, surprised that Iroh had identified the group so quickly.

"Relax, I am a very discreate, very old, man." Iroh said reassuringly and I gave him a small smile in response. "I provide sage council to those who seek me, and occasional sayings that no one understands, I am completely confidential about what I discuss with people. However, I can see your reluctance to talk about specifics so I will respect that. Why don't you give me the general gist of your problem and we can take it from there? I can at least provide some broad help to you."

"That works for me, thank you." I said with a sigh of relief. While I needed advice and from my limited knowledge of the history of Avatar Aang and the period that Iroh was from, I didn't fully trust him and given what I might do I couldn't trust him with specifics. "Where, where should I begin?"

"Why don't you tell me what the conflict that is eating you up from within is." Iroh said as he took a sip of tea, a look of contentment on his old face as he drank the warm liquid. "Then we can go forward with what advice I might be able to provide to you."

"Yeah my conflict is the heart of my problem so probably the best place to start." I said with a nod. "Basically, I believe a set of philosophies, philosophies that have been drilled into me as being the truth of the world ever since I was a child. As of right now, I still believe in them so that is not the problem. The problem is how we make sure that they are implemented throughout the world, in particular the methods for which we are planning on ensuring that they are implemented. They, they go against what I believe to be morally right."

"I see." Iroh said, refilling my now empty tea cup as he spoke. "And this is where the conflict within you is?"

"It is." I answered with another sigh. "I still believe in what we stand for, that is not at issue, and I believe that our views are the best way to restore and then preserve balance to the world. However, I believe that this can be implemented via the political and legal processes and by showing the world how our views balance it through open debate and public speeches. By contrast, it seems that, as you correctly identified, the Dark Lord and my fellow Death Eaters have a different way in which they wish to ensure that our views and policies are implemented worldwide."

"The Death Eaters are known for their extreme and illegal methods." Iroh pointed out to me bluntly. I had not meant to confirm that but I had, I just had to trust Iroh's discretion now. "Voldemort even more so given his reported abilities and cruelty. How did you not know this?"

"I, I grew up in the Northern Water Tribe." I replied with a hint of shame in my voice. This was something that I had been grappling with this ignorance since finding out about my mission and realized that it was related to my upbringing. "In one of the wealthiest pureblood households."

"I suspected that would be the case." Iroh said with a sad smile at me. "You are dressed in fine clothes from the Northern Water Tribe so I assumed that you would come from a pureblood family. Let me guess; they sheltered you from the realities of the Purity Warr that has been raging mainly in the United Republic and the ISEK between Korra and Voldemort and spun it in ways that looked best for you. Am I right?"

"Pretty much." I said as I took another bite of cake before letting out my thoughts for the first time verbally since my internal conflict had begun. "I was always told that Voldemort was being persecuted for his views because they are right and Korra doesn't want to acknowledge it because it would mean acknowledging her own failures and thus lose her grip on power. I was told that the Dark Lord was being discriminated against for being a bender and that any violence, and occasionally death, that occurred was always done in self-defense and never as an act of aggression on our part. I was told that they were trying to silence Voldemort from speaking the truth to the world because they were afraid of his message and the truths it contained. I was never told that we were at war or that we were doing anything illegal. I was kept sheltered from anything that could challenge my views and I was encouraged to live in an echo chamber with like-minded people and never question anything told to me by fellow Purists. All I was told was that there was a persecution against benders in general, and Voldemort in particular, by the Avatar and her supporters and that was enough for me. I idolized him, I never thought that Voldemort or the Death Eaters were capable of doing what they are asking me to do but clearly they are capable and willing to inflict great evil upon the world in order to win."

"May I ask what they wish for you to do?" Iroh asked when I was done. The venerable man, now spirit, had allowed me to talk while silently listening and not interrupting me once during my ramble.

"I'd rather not say." I replied honestly. I had already revealed too much to Iroh, I couldn't reveal the mission parameters to him as well, that was going too far.

"Very well, we can address the general things and not specifics, I understand the need for secrecy." Iroh said to me. "I am a confidant but the truth is yours to have and hold, not mine."

"Thank you." I say with a smile. The talk was helping but I couldn't reveal any more than my conflict between my methods for winning and those of the Dark Lord and my fellow Death Eaters.

"You appear to be a bright but sheltered kid who has just seen the world for what it really is, an ugly and messed up place." Iroh said to me and all I could do was nod in agreement. "I have seen this before back when I was alive in the Fire Nation. Lies, propaganda, spin, manipulation, these are the tools of dictators and autocrats. It was also the tools of puppet masters and used on King Kuei in the Earth Kingdom by Long Feng but that is not as relevant to this as what an autocrat like my brother or father did, that is more similar to your situation than Kuei's I believe."

"Probably as I wasn't kept locked up and sheltered the way the 52nd Earth King was." I agreed.

"No you weren't, you were exposed to the machine of propaganda that tyrants and despots use." Iroh said again. "Voldemort is known for them, at least from what I have heard from my fellow Spirits who have encountered him that is. I cannot make you see the realities though, that is for you to do. You must broaden yourself my boy."

"What do you mean?" I asked a little confused.

"You said that this view of the world was the only view that you were truly exposed to." Iroh recapped and again all I could do was nod. "It is a shame that that has happened but this isn't the first time, nor will it be the last, that the young and impressionable are misled by a single philosophy that has been preached by a charismatic and passionate leader and reinforced by other loyal supports of said leader. Remember, it is important to draw wisdom from different places. If you take it from only one place it becomes rigid and stale. Diversity of opinion is key to developing as person, you cannot allow one single view dominate your life forever, the consequences could be disastrous."

"Huh?" Was all that I could ask to this strange statement. I had read once that Iroh was known for his confusing sayings but until meeting him I hadn't known how true that had been.

"My nephew used to be like that with my sayings." Iroh said with an amused chuckle. "Basically, it means that you cannot limit yourself to one world view and expect it to be always true without ever questioning it with opposing views. You must seek wisdom from other sources to become a well-rounded person, at least that is how I see it. That is what you have begun to do by coming to the Spirit World and meeting me."

"I see and yet you won't tell me much more." I pointed out after I took a sip of tea.

"No, I am a spirit, life is a journey for the living and you must find those answers on your own." Iroh said with another light laugh. "But by coming here you now know that this is the direction that you must take, even if you didn't consciously realize that at the start. There is little more that I can do without the precise details of what you are conflicted about in particular."

"It's, it's just that I feel like I am now on a dark path and walking in the direction of an even deeper darkness." I began finally voicing the concerns of the evil I had been asked to commit in the name of Voldemort, the Death Eaters, purity, balance, and benders rights. "If I go through with my mission I know that I will have gone beyond the point of no return. I will have given into evil and be on a dark path that I never thought that my life would ever take. I, I am unsure if I will be able to return if I take that path."

"Sometimes life is like this dark tunnel such as the one that you are about to enter." Iroh said with a note of wisdom in his old voice. "You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving you will come to a better place. Just be careful to avoid falling into complete darkness, it is hard to return from that."

Again, I just blinked stupidly like a fish at Iroh, the man was very confusing at time. The old man chuckled again and poured us some more tea before he again explained what he was getting at.

"You say you are about to walk down a dark path and I can see that in your eyes that you believe that you are the cusp of that path and that you don't want to be there." Iroh said as he took a sip of his tea. "Sometimes, when a person is surrounded by the dark, that dark might always seem to be closing in from all sides, but so long as you look for that light, you can often find it. But if all you look for is the dark, that is all you will ever see. Do not look at the dark but search for the light."

"I, I get that." I said as I mulled over the words that Iroh had said to me, sipping some more tea as I thought about his words.

It made sense, I was on a dark path, or about to be on one if I executed my mission correctly. It was one that I had begun to walk towards years ago when I had become a Death Eater and not realized it until now. However, after learning of the shadow war Voldemort had been waging against Korra and her allies, and learning of the truth of my mission to the Fire Nation, I had realized just how evil it all was.

The Dark Lord's moniker was well earned, a moniker I had never actually questioned the origin of, and I was sure that I didn't want to be like that. I still believed in the philosophy that had been drilled into me since childhood, but I made a promise to myself to understand the other side and other perspectives as well so that I could truly evaluate my views.

I wanted to return to the light and I had a finite amount of time before the darkness encased me forever. That was if I could live long enough to find the light and understand the other side that is.

"It's time for you to look inward and begin asking yourself the big questions: who are you? And what do you want?" Iroh said as he finished off his tea and interrupting my thoughts. "And that means that it is time for you to return to the physical world and decide what to do about your internal conflict. You are always welcome to come back for tea and advice should you need it, I will be here for you my boy."

"Regulus, my name is Regulus." I said with a final bow to Iroh, which he returned.

The old man was right though, it was time to go. With one last smile at Iroh, I closed my eyes and exhaled, sending my spirit back to my body in the physical world in the process.

Opening my eyes in the small meditation room in my suite, I finally knew what I had to do. My talk with Iroh had made me realize what I wanted to be going forward, who I was deep down and what that meant I had to do. It would take planning, preparation, luck, and above all else the sacrifice of my current life but that was something that I knew that I had make in order to return to the light.

With a deep sigh, I rose from my position and left the meditation room and stretched. I had a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it in. I didn't know what my actions would ultimately lead me to down the road, all I knew was that I was about to do something that would once again irreparably change my life forever. This time though, in the long run, it would be for the best.

**Another appearance of Iroh with some classic Iroh wisdom. There isn't much more to add here other then that I am going to try really hard to get the next chapter out on time but no promises. Please read and review to let me know what you think of this story and any questions that you might have will be answered at the start of next week's chapter. Until next week.  
**

**Stringdog**


	6. Chapter 6

**Here is the sixth chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. At last one of these is actually being released on time, though that might not be the case for future chapters as real life is starting to catch up to me. There are ****o questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the sixth chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 6**

Just because I knew what I had to do, didn't mean that it was going to be easy in the slightest. I knew what my actions would cost me, or at least I had a pretty good suspicion of the cost I would have to pay for my actions. It was something I had never prepared or planned for, nor was it a situation that I expected to be ever be in.

Still, I knew that the actions I was about to take were the right ones. They would prevent me from falling completely into the darkness, even if meant leaving the only life I had ever know behind, it was a sacrifice worth making. I would save my soul and countless innocent lives in the process and the only price was my current life. It was a price I had come to realize was worth paying, I just had to make sure that I was ready to pay it.

I wasn't as unprepared as someone in my position of wealth and privilege might have been and certainly better prepared than any of my friends at the time would have been. True I had never really known hardship, I had never truly slept rough as we always had used the best gear on the ice, I had never been hungry unless it had been by choice and I had never not had the means to buy what I needed. All of that would likely be gone when I went through with my plan, but it was something that I was prepared for. Despite all this, I had one thing going for me, I could hunt.

As mentioned in previous chapters, I had been hunting with Sirius and our uncle Alphard growing up. My parents had disapproved of this because they saw it as beneath people of our station in life but it was part of Water Tribe culture whether they liked it or not and I felt it was the right thing to do. I still wouldn't know how useful those days had been until I was on the airship heading to the Fire Nation. I took comfort in my upcoming plans during that flight by remembering those days out on the frozen tundra.

Though Sirius and I had bonded over hunting, or only real bond growing up, we had been taught by our uncle Alphard. I wouldn't realize it until after speaking with Sirius following my rediscovery, but Alphard would always take us hunting during the full moon so that we didn't learn of the horrors that the purebloods committed with bloodbending during that period. It also saved us from being forced to bloodbend and ultimately suffering from the madness bloodbending abuse brought on in its users. Alphard used those trips to teach us everything he knew and he knew a lot, Alphard was an expert hunter.

We learned to hunt with bending and with weapons and traps just in case we had to hunt away from water and ice. It was something back then that I had thought would never happen but now, well that shit saved my life more times than I could count in my many years as a vagabond. It was a shame that Alphard died about a year after Sirius left as I would have liked to thank him for all he did for me and how it helped me survive but alas he is gone and has been memorialized for his work by my brother.

Alphard taught us to always use every piece of the animal so that none of it went to waste, otherwise we were just hunting for sport and while a trophy was acceptable, wasteful and wanton killing wasn't as it messed with the delicate ecosystems of the Northern Tundra. It was a mix of conservationism, use of everything, and avoiding killing for fun as Alphard saw the killing of animals for fun a bad sign and the first step towards becoming a sociopath. It was prophetic as many Northerners had done that with bloodbending and it was another way in which Alphard protected us and ensured that we didn't turn out like the majority of the other pureblood elites in the Northern Water Tribe.

We would eat the meat, even the offal that was edible and some of it isn't too bad when you are really hungry, skin the animal for fur or skins for shelter and blankets, that was where the brain can in handy as it made a good paste. We would use sinews for sewing and the bones for various features like needles and knives, though that last part I will get into in a later chapter. All in all, Alphard taught us how to live off the land and survive should we ever need too.

It was remembering that and all the skills that Alphard drilled into me and Sirius in our formative years while I was on the airship that likely saved me in those early days when I needed to get as far from Fire Fountain City as possible. It allowed me to survive until I knew I was safer than I had been when I had left the sight of my mission. It took a little effort, but I was able to remember all that Alphard had told me, write it down, and began my preparations on the airship.

I started by emptying my bag of all the shit I had packed for the Fire Nation, most of it would be useless as it was the trapping of wealth and material goods that had become status symbols in the North. I knew that I needed to travel light and I had one advantage, I am a waterbender. That means that it is really easy for me to clean clothes in any river as I am good at purifying water and the Fire Nation had enough of it to survive without a lack of water problem.

That was why I only packed a few spare pairs of undergarments, the only items I could carry easily and would be worn quickly compared to hardy clothes. I would have to buy proper clothes and the rest of what I needed when I left my mission during the day in Fire Fountain City. This was because we would get there a few days before I had to plant the bomb so I had a little time. Because all my clothes were fine and fancy Northern Water Tribe shit and not the rough stuff I would need on my journey, clothes were the first thing I needed to buy.

I didn't know precisely how or where I would travel, but I knew that there had to be some places in Fire Fountain City that would sell me what I needed and allow me to figure out the best modes of transportation. That was a separate list I had to make. I needed spare boots, rough clothes, fire starters, and other essentials for living off the land and for walking long distances as I felt that most of my trip would be on foot. Not everything would have to be bought however.

I had a few things already with me that would serve me well on the run and I packed them in my bag. I had all the necessary shit for fishing without my bending that I had bought in my first few days in the Foggy Swamp, as wells as everything I needed to gut, clean and debone the fish. I also had a razor-sharp skinning knife, and a spare, as well as a few other knives of various lengths that I could use in an emergency or to deal with my hunting kill. Most purebloods, myself included back then, weren't great with a bladed weapon but I could carry many knives from my hunting days and knew how to use them in a pinch. I was as prepared as I could be from what I had brought with me onto the ship.

There was only one other issue that I had to deal with. Money. I had plenty on me. As a. Diplomatic Envoy of the Northern Water Tribe, the official title I was charged with at the time, I had a large purse to use as I please. I had to remind people that I was a pureblood and therefore the elite of the elite and act like it and the large purse helped a lot with that. It was something that I had been used to in the past and had reveled in, but after learning of the mission and speaking with Iroh it now made me uneasy to have such wealth on me.

Still, I would use the money to buy the best gear that I could but also stuff that was still practical, easy to carry, and not flashy. I knew that I would have to stay beneath the radar and I couldn't flash around any wealth but I needed the best gear I could get to survive so there was going to have to balance everything I bought. I would also bring as much money as I had left over and use it sparingly wherever I could so that I could survive in any backwaters town I found myself in. I was going to have to be frugal with everything and I knew it.

That didn't stop me from deciding to wander around the ship and see if there was any valuable items around that I could easily carry and sell or barter in case of emergencies, or even see if I could find items that would actually be useful when I left Fire Fountain City. That was exactly what I did once I had everything that I was taking from my suite packed in my bag. I left my room and began the next part of my plan.

It was during my wandering around the ship, the crew giving me a wide berth out of respect for my status as a pureblood noble, a perk that would be one of the last times I ever use it, that I found the answer to how I would travel around the Fire Nation incognito. I was down in the cargo hold, looking through the boxes that we were transporting for things that I could either use like robe or things that I could carry and sell when I found it. Of course, if anyone had asked I was down here to check in on my diplomatic pouch, something only I was allowed to even look at, so no one would question why I was in the cargo hold.

I had been looking through some of the clothing supplies that were in the cargo hold for some reason to see if there was anything that I could use when I found it. It was only the hooded cloak but it gave me the idea that I needed. I knew that I could pull it off and what Purist or Death Eater would look for me within the specific group that the cloak had given me the idea for. It was the perfect cover for me and it played to my skills in a way I had never expected to use. What I had planned would get me labeled a blood traitor, as well as the treason I knew that I would have to commit, so I needed a cover that would be so good that most Purists and any Death Eater wouldn't give me a second look if they accidentally ran into me.

What I had found was a dark blue cloak cut in the Southern Water Tribal style and colors though with no insignia or markers. I knew what this could be used as, especially given how few people knew exactly what to look for when it came down to the group I was going to be pretend to be part of. That was because it was similar enough to the cloaks worn by the Water Mystics.

Even now there is not that much known about the Water Mystics and their secretive order, but I knew enough about them to know how to impersonate one. The Water Mystics are an ancient order whose origins are shrouded in myth and legend to the point that not even the current handful of Water Mystics know the truth of how they came to be. However, what they do is known. They are healers, though they differ from usual healers, and damn good ones at that.

The Water Mystics are some of the most gifted healers in the world with abilities that far exceed my own. That is saying something as my own skills being good enough to have gotten me into medical school if I had tried to go down that rout but as a man that was closed off to me by Northern Water Tribal law at the time. The Mystics, who wore midnight blue, simple clothes and hooded cloaks, wandered around the world on their own, never in pairs, and traveled from village to village healing all those who needed healing no matter that person's station in life or level of bending purity.

They would normally walk, though they were known to take other forms of travel, and would heal for free. All that they asked for in return was food, shelter, and supplies if the village could spare them and only after the healing was done. They were protected by international law and could not be attacked for fear of bringing down the ire of the Avatar herself. The protections were so strong that even Chief Lucius recognized their rights and free travel within the Northern Water Tribe. They were neutral in all regards and so mysterious that it was unknown precisely how many of them there were, though it was known that both genders were represented amongst their members.

It was the perfect cover for me as I knew that the best way for me to successfully lie low was to stay away from major cities and even largish towns for fear of running into someone who directly or indirectly was part of the spymaster's vast network. I was going to have to stick to the countryside and small, forgotten villages. I would also have to travel on foot most of the time because public transportation would be too risky for me to take unless I could sneak and hide on it as a stowaway.

That was why living as a fake Water Mystic would be perfect for me. No one would question me, I would be offered some protections so long as I didn't run into an actual Mystic which was a rarity, I could even get shelter, supplies, and food for healing people which I had a feeling I was going to have to do at some point.

Best of all was that I wouldn't be suspected by Purists or Death Eaters as they looked down on the Water Mystics as blood traitors who plied their trade for free to lesser nonbenders who didn't deserve our help. If the weak couldn't help themselves then they weren't worth saving was one of the many Purist philosophies that until now I hadn't questioned but more on that when I truly encounter that as a fake Water Mystic.

It was the best course of action I could take so naturally I took the cloak and returned to my room with everything that I had taken from the storage area of the airship. It wasn't much but there were some easy to carry, easy to sell, items that would come in handy in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.

Once I had everything I could get from the airship, I only had one more thing left to do before the airship reached the Fire Nation. However, I had to wait for nightfall to do that as it was the riskiest part of my plan and the part that once it was done would set me on a path I could never walk back from. I was almost ready for that moment.

* * *

I had taken my dinner in my suite, as was expected for someone of my station when surrounded by commoners, and told the captain that I was turning in early for the night. I did indeed take a nap as I needed to be alert for what I was about to do. Now it was in the early hours and most of the ship was asleep. It was time.

Donning the dark blue cloak and hood, which fit me almost perfectly though it was a shade too long and the cowl hid my face a lot more than I had anticipated, both of which was a good thing as they would further help to hide my identity, I slipped out of my room. It was late and only the graveyard shift was on duty but that didn't matter, they wouldn't have found me even if they had been looking.

It was another advantage of Alphard's teachings during the full moon, how to be stealthy. It was critical for stalking certain prey that were skittish so Alphard drilled it into us from the start. Sirius was a master at, hence Alphard giving him the nickname Padfoot, but I wasn't too shabby at it. Sure, I would be caught by Sirius and Alphard every time, but anyone who wasn't specially trained wouldn't catch me. It was also how I was always able to sense Sirius' presence when he tried to track me though I'll never tell him that.

It was with these skills that I was able to get down to the cargo hold without running into anyone along the way. I may have a reason to be there but it would still look suspicious given the time of day and I didn't want to have to answer any awkward questions, not now, not when I was so close to completing this part of the plan.

The diplomatic pouch was inside a special platinum safe to prevent an earthbender from opening it and that was extra thick just in case a seismic sense user tried to break or 'see' in. It was also likely built like this to protect the ship if the bomb went off accidentally. Only I had the combination to the safe and this was the first time I used it. It was time for the last thing I had to do while on the airship and before we reached Fire Fountain City in 8 hours.

Inside the safe was a light blue canvas bag, small enough to be carried over your back, and stamped with the Great Seal of the Northern Water Tribe and all the necessary markers to show that it was a diplomatic pouch and therefore protected from being searched. Tentatively, I picked up the pouch, took off my cloak, slung it over my shoulder, put the cloak back on, pulled up the hood and resealed the safe. With the bomb now strapped to my back and under the cloak, I left the cargo bay.

It took twice as long to get to the observation deck atop the airship as it had to get to the cargo bay. This was partly due to the distance but also due to me being overly cautious given the bomb that I had on me and the desire not to be seen with it. Still, my skills held out and I was able to reach the observation deck only having to hide once to avoid a bored technician heading to make a midnight inspection.

I opened the door to the observation deck as quietly as possible before quickly closing it. I knew that no one would be up here given how cold it was at this altitude and time of day. That was why as soon as I was outside and already shivering at the temperature, despite growing up in the Northern Water Tribe. I headed to the back railing that overlook the stern of the airship. I had to be quick so that I wouldn't be caught by some crew member coming up here for a smoke break or some other activity.

Once I was there, I took off the cloak long enough to remove the bag before putting it back on, it was too cold to keep it off for long. Carefully I placed the canvas bag on the deck. It was finally time to see what I was supposed to use to ensuring the Dark Lord's victory by shifting public opinion in his favor with a false flag attack.

Producing a special key that had been waiting for me in my suite, I used it to unlock the padlock on the canvas bag. With trembling hands, and this time it was not from the cold, I unzipped the bag and looked down upon the bomb for the first and only time.

It was as I had been told to expect. Small and easy to hide but with an accelerant inside it that could be used to increase the damage, and in a wooden box as was favored in the probending arena in the Fire Nation, the resulting fire would be devastating. Next to it was a remote detonator and a sheet of paper addressed to me and that was signed by Chief Lucius with instructions on how to plant, arm and set off the bomb, along with when the right moment was and what I was to do after it went off.

It was disturbing to see the letter giving me instructions on how to slaughter a whole pureblood family from another pureblood just to win the public support aspect of the Purity War. Taking the letter and pocketing it just in case I ever needed, and I would after I was found, my decision crystallized. The time to do something I couldn't excuse had come.

Stepping back, I summoned all the water from the water skin I always carried at my hip and used it to pick up the bomb and detonator out of the bag, I would return the bag to the safe when I was done and before I would turn in so that they knew what had happened when the safe was eventually opened but I would be long gone by then. With the bomb now encased in water, along with the detonator, I froze the water and pushed the now frozen bomb as far out behind the ship as I could with my bending.

Then I did the thing that I had been planning ever since I had returned from the spirit world and that I knew would end this life forever. I released my hold on the ice and let it drop and fall to the water below, though not before unfreezing it so that the bomb sunk to the bottom of the ocean where it would never harm anyone. I had just betrayed the Dark Lord but it was worth it to save so many innocent lives, especially those of our allies at the time though my position on that would also change in the coming years.

With the bomb gone, I zipped up the bag, picked it up, turned and left the observation deck. I had avoided the dark, I had saved countless lives at likely the cost of my own, at the very least the life I currently knew and all I could feel was relieved that I had done the right thing. I had just become a traitor to the Death Eaters, my nation, my blood and the Dark Lord and I didn't care.

By the time they realized I would be long gone. It was time to start my new life, a life where I would be looking over my shoulder for what I expected to be the rest of my life and I was comfortable with that. It was time for one more day of preparations and then I would begin my life on the run. My path to redemption had official begun and what a path it would be.

**A shorter chapter than my usual length in this series or this general universe but this short fic will have chapters that are short. Next week's chapter will be longer but not by much and it is the last drafted chapter and it will actually have a little dialog unlike this chapter but as this is supposed to be a memoir dialog is not as important as Regulus' actions and feelings at the time. After next chapter I will be taking a little more time to produce chapters as I have to write and edit them in the same week. The next chapter will also be the last chapter where Regulus lives his current life as it deals with his time in Fire Fountain City before he walks away from the Death Eaters for good. As always, please read and review to let me know what you think of this story and any questions that you might have will be answered at the start of next week's chapter. Until next week.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Here is the seventh chapter in Regulus' prequel spinoff adventure in my Avatar/Harry Potter crossed over universe. This will likely be the last chapter released on time as this is the last chapter that had been drafted ahead of its week of release. Between writing and real life the next few chapters will likely be late unfortunately but there is no avoiding it. There are n****o questions or concerns to address here so sit back and enjoy the seventh chapter in Regulus' standalone story; The Path to Redemption.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great works of fiction.**

**Chapter 7**

The most nerve wracking part of my plan was not the stealing from the ship or the preparations for my upcoming life on the run. It wasn't even committing treason against the Dark Lord and the Death Eater by ditching the bomb over the side of the ship and thus ensuring that my mission would fail. No, the most nerve wracking part was when the day I spent in Fire Fountain City acting as if nothing was amiss so as to not arise suspicion in me too soon.

It took all of my willpower to not become a nervous wreck but somehow I managed it seeing as I am still here. While I knew that my mission would not be interrupted with as only I had access to the diplomatic pouch, I also didn't trust the crew. I just knew that there had to be a spy amongst them who would report to Voldemort if I did anything out of line with my mission, though knowing Pyrites most of the crew were probably spies or informants in his vast network.

It wasn't anything they did, it was just a feeling, but I knew that I was being watched while I was on the ship and not in my room. It wasn't just on the ship that I had this feeling but from the moment I landed in Fire Fountain City. I thought I was just being paranoid but sometimes you are justified in that paranoia as you are being watched and in then end, the paranoid do survive.

That paranoia saved my life, I am sure of it because I would find out later that I was being watched both on the ship and in the city but that I had managed to lose them. Paranoia can save you, so can hunting skills that teach you how to track your prey and as such how to pick up a tail and subsequently throw someone off your trail. Once again Uncle Alphard's lessons had saved me.

Still, my skills didn't make my day in the city any less stressful because of all that I was dealing with at the time. As soon as the airship landed, I disembarked and coordinated the delivery of the non-diplomatic supplies that our consulate in the city had requested. It was basic stuff from home that were hard to acquire in the Fire Nation but that the Consular here wanted them both for the comfort they provided and to show off his position to everyone else.

Once the delivery was set up and everything was unloaded, I left to walk to the consulate. I could have requested a bodyguard, they even wanted to give me one, but I refused as I needed to be alone and I had a feeling that the bodyguard would be a spy for the Dark Lord. Besides, I was a lowly envoy and just a teenager, no one would think of me as anything more than some Norther Water Tourist. I carried my water pouch and a long hunting knife openly to show my abilities and while I am not a great fighter, I could hold my own long enough for the authorities to arrive if I was attacked. I also stuck to major roads and public areas, I was safe the entire way.

Once I was at the consulate, I announced myself to the Consular as required by our laws. The man was a low level noble and pureblood from home but he was in charge so I had to report to him and tell him of my plans.

The plans I told him about were that I was to oversee the delivery of the supplies he had requested, then go to the Arctic Foxes match in a few days as Chief Lucius' personal representative before going back to the Foggy Swamp where I was stationed. I was also going to stay on the ship while I was in the city and spend the next few days seeing the city and learning about it as this was my first time in the Fire Nation and I wanted to look around before returning to the Swamp.

The Consular was surprised that I was the diplomatic attaché that Lucius or Ambassador Winickus had sent but he wasn't much higher in the pecking order of the Norther Water Tribe and the official scroll I had from Lucius shut him up quickly. He was also surprised with my decision to stay on the ship as there was a lush suite in the consulate for me to stay in but I told him I had to oversee a few thing personally there so it was best for me to be on the airship for that.

The one thing that the Consular did tell that I listened to was to tell me about the city. He told me to avoid the seedier parts that were frequented by scum, scoundrels, scammers and other undesirables, all nonbenders and all criminals who had been left to fester by the blood traitors who ran the city.

When the Consular was done ranting about the nonbender scum of the city, I thanked him and asked if he knew of a market that sold supplies for hunting and other activities in the area. The Consular was confused that I would want to do partake in such a low class activity but I dissuaded him by claiming that I had plans to go hunting with some swampbenders and I felt that Fire Fountain City would provide me with some more useful gear than the Foggy Swamp or the back home in the North.

The Consular was helpful on this front. He provided me the location of a market just off the center square of the city, where the famous fire breathing statute of Firelord Ozai still stood, that would sell me what I needed, though he still turned his nose up at the idea of hunting. I didn't care, I knew what I needed and had the money for it so the man's opinion didn't matter to me. By the time he realized that I was lying to him, I would be long gone I hoped.

With all the information I needed, I thanked the Consular and headed out of the Consulate. Again, I felt like I was being followed, I was but that wouldn't be confirmed until after the infamous Global Raids during the Second Purity War. Out of paranoia and an abundance of caution, I took a circuitous route to the center of the city. I didn't know the city well, but what I had learned about Fire Fountain City was that it all emanated from the center square and there were a lot of narrow alleyways the further from the city center that you went. That was perfect for me.

As I walked, I made sure to walk at a quick pace away from the Consulate until I was in a residential neighborhood a good distance from the city center that was packed in very tightly. If I recall correctly it was a working-class neighborhood for the local factory workers with a slightly sketchy but not terrible reputation. Regardless, it worked just fine for me to make sure I wasn't being tailed.

Once I was in an area that was quiet enough and had few people out on the narrow streets, I slipped into and alleyway and quickly pulled out the cloak I had stolen from the bag I had brought to pack my purchases in. In a fluid move, I slipped it on and pulled up the hood, taking another alleyway in the process. Once the hood was up, I strapped my bag to back again and continued through various alleyways until I was back on a main road that headed straight for the city center.

By this point I was pretty sure that I was alone as I hadn't noticed anyone while I was in the alleyways and my action had made it hard to follow me. I felt that I was safe from being followed and the hood hid my face so I made my way back towards the city center, though I continued to allow my paranoia and nerves to run rampant and didn't go directly there. I took a few side streets and a full detour that would have made it impossible to follow me without being seen and I didn't see anyone. Given the fact that I am still here today, I am certain that I had lost whatever tail I had had back then, though when that happened I don't know, nor do I know what lost the tail only that I lost it.

With the tail gone, I finally headed for the city center. Once I reached the city center I had to pause for the simple reason to stare at what Fire Fountain City is famous for, though given Hermione's habit of erasing history I am unsure if it is still standing.

Anyway, I stood in front of the statue and spent a moment staring at it, and using Ozai's polished abs to make sure that I wasn't being watched or followed. Sure, it was an exaggeration of Ozai's physical body, at least according to the records I had read in school, but it was still an impressive statue both in design and execution.

The statue was a symbol of power and majesty of the leader who had commissioned it. Sure, the world saw Ozai for what he really was, a genocidal tyrant bent on world domination, but that didn't stop him from being a powerful leader who knew how to lead and was one of the many figures who Voldemort acknowledged as a powerful man and a testament to the strength of purebloods. I was glad that at the time the Fire Nation had decided to keep the statue of Ozai and not ignore his significance to their history no matter how negative that significance was.

Once my moment of reverie was over I left, making sure that my hood was up and that I still wasn't being followed. I had some more shopping to do and I needed to do complete it by the end of the day.

I went to the market that I had been told about by our Consular and began searching for what I needed to buy for my new life on the run. What I needed was at least 2 sets of rough clothes that were cheap, durable, easy to mend, waterproof, warm, and above all else dark blue in color. I also needed a pair of hiking or boots that had the same requirements and an additional water skin just in case of emergencies.

Fortunately, with the multicultural nature of the world, I was able to find just about everything I needed from a store run by an expat from the Southern Water Tribe that catered to waterbenders who wanted to spend time in the countryside but maintain a taste of home while doing it. It was perfect for what I needed, so long as the gear could survive the trip.

The expat could tell that I wasn't a Southerner, despite the cloak I wore, but because it hid my light blue clothes and I had removed my braids when I had put the cloak on he also couldn't tell I was from the North as I didn't have a distinctive accent like my parents and other high born Northern purebloods. He just thought I was a local who needed some gear for a few days in the wilderness and who understood that the Water Tribes made the best gear for that. As such, he was more than willing to help me out.

That is one thing similar about the Water Tribes, we are the best for survival and rough weather gear. When we hunt on the tundra, live on the ice, and face regular blizzards so we need to keep warm. That was why we developed the best gear to stay warm and dry. It was gear like this that I bought at this stall.

The Southerner was able to not only sell me all the necessary clothes, boots and water skin that would aid in my disguise, but he also sold me a better pack than the one I had, a simple tent, sleeping bag and roll mat that were to the same specifications as my clothes and that would serve me well over the years. All of the gear together light by any means but I didn't care, I would need it and I wasn't weak after all my training, though the years in Omashu would sap my strength and I am still recovering from that.

After the man had mad assurances that my gear would last a long time so long as I took care of it, and I sure as shit knew how to take care of it, I paid for it. It was all expensive despite the basic look but it was only a fraction of the money that I had on me for the trip and was a more than worthwhile expense. Plus, the bag had a special secret pouch for my money which was an added bonus.

After that I went around the other stalls in the market and picked up a few odds and ends like basic fire starter kits, basic first aid and sowing materials, mess tins, simple cutlery, and some standard rations to last a few weeks. Basically, it was dried food that could be easily cooked and a lot of what I hoped was hippo cow jerky but given what I would end up living off, it wasn't the worst shit I ate in my years on the run, hunger makes almost anything edible when you haven't eaten in days. I also sold the things I had taken from the ship or that I wouldn't need so that I had a little extra cash for my trip, though I kept some to sell later just in case.

I was about to head back to the ship when a stall in the back corner of the market caught my eye. It was clearly for hunters and the man behind it, a brawny, bald dude with burn scars on his exposed arms and a vest made out of the pelt of an animal, was a man who knew his business. Deciding that it wouldn't hurt to check it out, I went to the stall, still looking like a traveler with my cloak, hood and pack, and began examining his wares.

"Anything catch your eye?" The man asked in gruff voice with a distinctive local and working class accent as I looked over several pieces that were clearly overpriced and not that usefully for hunting.

"Yeah I was wondering where you kept the good shit." I said as I looked him in the eye, hoping the deep cowl of my hood hid my face enough and added an air of mystery to my youthful appearance. "None of this shit would be useful for a trip into the wilderness, or at least for a true survivalist this crap is useless. It's pretty and looks good for those looking for a little fun out in the surrounding countryside but I need shit that would work in the true wilds where it is just me, my gear and my wits verses the forces of beasts and nature. You got anything that could actually help me?"

"You planning such a trip." The man said to me not changing his posture but with a slight quirk of his eyebrow, clearly he doubted me cos of my young age.

"Possibly." I said as I picked up what was a skinning knife but that wouldn't do the job well, it just looked good but the edge needed some work and it wasn't large enough. "But I need actual stuff, not this tourist shit. You might fool some pansy ass nobles or foreigners who don't know a hippo cow from a gorilla goat with this shit is good but you and I both know that this wouldn't work on a rabaroo, let alone anything worth killing, eating and using its bones and sinews for tools. I dunno about you, but I like to use all of my kill."

"You seem to know your shit." The man said as he gave me an almost imperceptible nod. "You know about the thrill of the hunt then?"

I raised my right wrist and showed off an ivory band that encircled it. It was made from the bone of a koalaotter that I had killed, gutted, eaten, and used every part of that I could. I still wear it to this day.

"Took me a day of waiting by the air hole on a glacier to kill the animal who gave me this." I said with a grin at the man. "It was slim pickings at the time so I had to take what I could get and I was in that hide in subzero temperatures for 24 hours. I had a split second to use my harpoon to kill it when it came up for air. I didn't hesitate. My thrust was steady and true because I took it right through its skull, quick and clean. I hauled it out and went to work. The blubber went to keeping me warm and my lamp lit while I worked, the meat to the fire for dinner, the rest kept to be made into jerky or left on the ice for the scavengers to enjoy. Its skin became a new waterproof tarp for my later trips and its bones, well those went into this bracelet to commemorate my kill, as well as other useful items. Yes, I know the thrill of the hunt but only out on the frozen tundra, I'm about to go out and enjoy the land around here for a while and I like to earn my dinner the hard way just as any man should do. You look like a man you can help me."

"Aye, I am." The man said with a feral grin at me, on the showed several missing, broken and yellow teeth. "I had to check to make sure you knew what you were talking about though your actions showed that you had experience with my wares. So, few fuckers here know the meaning of, let alone appreciate, the hunt. It is good to meet a fellow enthusiast. Now I have a few questions of you to see if I can help a brother out."

"Ask quickly, I am in a hurry." I replied. "I want to head out as soon as possible, I am used to hunting during the full moon and it is almost upon us. The night is when all the best and most challenging creatures come out and I need to get a head start on them."

It was in fact almost the full moon. It was more of a coincidence that I was heading out around the time my waterbending was at its best in a nation where there weren't that many waterbenders but I would take it as it was an added boost to my abilities during a time I needed it the most. It is also best to be as close to the truth as possible when you lie, which is what I was doing at the time, and I do enjoy hunting during the full moon, still do, so it was easy to convince the stall owner of my intent.

"No problem." The man said with a nod. "Night stalking is the best time for the big and dangerous game, that's the shit that separates the men from the pussies in my book. Now, what do you need? I need to know what you are hunting, where you are hunting it, and how long you will be in the wilderness for so I can sell you what is essential."

"I have what I brought from home but its more useful for hunting the beasts on the frozen tundra than out in the wilds of the Fire Nation." I said to the stall owner. "And any hunter worth his salt will know that he needs different tools for different areas, environments, and ecosystems."

"I couldn't agree more." The man said with a firm nod of his bald head. "I went hunting once down in the South and needed a full harpoon, an additional spear, and a machete for the beasts down there, only the machete is useful here. So, what can I provide for you?"

"Basically, I need good, top quality gear that will help me catch what I need to eat." I said, I would not need anything large like a harpoon that I would use in the North but I would need gear that could take down the creatures of the Fire Nation. "I am not a big trophy hunter, it's just a waste of good meat and seems redundant to me as hunting shouldn't be for sport but for utility or pest control, but I need the right gear to hunt here. I'm looking for top quality shit but also shit that doesn't look flashy or expensive, the price should be for quality and not appearance. Basically, I need functional and carriable gear as all I have is my bag."

"A true man of the land, just my kinda guy." The seller said with a nod as he reached below his stall and pulled out a medium sized, waterproof, case. Opening it, he showed me a collection of various knives that served almost all possible purposes when dealing with a kill, along with tools like sharpeners and heavy-duty bone cutters that would be useful for surviving off the land. "This collection is some of the finest on the market and the price is pure quality, that is the only thing worth paying for when looking at gear that will aid you in living off the land. This case contains all that you would need to skin any beast that you kill, as well as the essentials for and prepare the meat and using the body."

"What about traps and projectiles?" I asked as I picked up a knife that would help skin a medium sized animal and checked it, it was top quality with a razor sharp edge and yet simple looking so as to not draw attention. It was a pure tool and the price would be worth it for the quality.

"I have both but given your restrictions I wouldn't suggest a bow or even a blow gun but rather throwing knives." The man said as he pulled out a paperback book and a collection of small traps that would fit in my bag, as well as a sheath of the aforementioned throwing knives. "This book is a companion book for making traps out of anything that you might find out in the wild and that would work in the Fire Nation's environment. I know that traps aren't a major thing out on the tundra but they are useful here for the small game that are needed to live in between the big kills. I assume you know how to use a throwing knife."

"I have some familiarity with them." I said with a nod as a withdrew one of the knives and tested its balance as best I could. As with the tools, it was well made and perfectly balanced for throwing from what I could tell. "They will serve me well if the traps fail or in a case of self-defense. I'll take it all. Now let's talk price."

We haggled over the price for a few minutes but my knowledge of hunting and the good repour I had built with the man helped me get a good deal. In the end I paid a decent amount for the gear but it was quality stuff that would come in handy in the years to come for me, I actually still have a few of those items in my office as reminders of the hardships I faced in my years on the run.

Once the transaction was complete, I thanked the man and packed them in my bag. We grasped forearms, he thought I was a Southerner and I did nothing to dissuade his opinion of me, so that was why he offered me a sign of respect in the South, and I left. I had to get back to the airship and prepare.

As soon as I left the market, I once again made sure that I wasn't being followed before finding a quiet alleyway and taking off the cloak and putting it back in my now nearly full bad. I couldn't allow the crew to see me in it as it would raise a lot of suspicion that I couldn't afford at the moment. I then reapplied my braids, the last time I would wear Northern Water Braids for 15 years, and walked back to the ship.

I had a bag with me and my excuse if challenged was that I was a rich noble in a new city, I wanted to go shopping and find some expensive shit to show off as was part of our culture and expected from the heir to a Tribal Council seat. Thankfully I wasn't challenged and got back to the ship without a problem. It was time to make my final preparations.

* * *

I spent the next few hours locked in my suite packing my bag. I had spent days out on the tundra in the past, the longer trips that uncle Alphard would take me and Sirius on back when there was a long bloodbending fervor that Alphard was protecting us from, so I knew how to pack a survival bag efficiently. The time I took was more to make sure I had everything and if there was anything I was missing, I would know what it was and could get it at the first village I stopped in.

Once the packing was done, I began planning my escape route. I knew that most of this trip was going to be on foot and that I had a few days head start before the Dark Lord realized that I had betrayed him so I had to use that time to put as much distance between me and Fire Fountain City as possible and lay a few false trails in the process. All of that would make it harder for them to find me once I officially disappeared and gave up every aspect of my soon to be former life.

With the route planned and my bag packed I took a brief nap to be sharp for the first leg of my desertion as I would be travelling all night. I needed to be rested and prepared as I would be at risk if the stories of danger regarding what I was about to do were true.

* * *

When I woke it was late but the airship was still active. I used the intercom system in my suite to order a large, meat heavy dinner cooked Northern style, in my room. After it was delivered I feasted on what would be my last large, well cooked meal until I went to Ba Sing Se after Sirius confronted me in Omashu so sorry bro, your cooking isn't that good but that meal we had in your apartment was still the best I had had in over a decade.

Leaving the empty tray and plates outside my suite so that it would be found and cleared away and thus leave my room undisturbed, therefore protecting myself for a few days, I hopped in the shower. Again, this would be my last good wash for years but that didn't bother me, I knew what I was getting into and I was ready for it, I just wanted one last good shower before leaving. It was my last luxury before the hardships that I would face on the road ahead of me.

After my shower, I did one lost sweep to make sure that I had everything before getting ready. I knew that it would be cold out during the night so I wrapped up in the layers that I had laid out. when I was done I looked like a generic Water Mystic, or at least close enough to pass providing the people had never seen one before.

With everything ready, I checked the time and realized that it was late and only the skeleton crew was around. The time to leave my life behind had finally come.

I pulled on my cloak, hoisted the bag that was heavy but easily manageable onto my back, I had carried worse during my trips into the tundra with Uncle Alphard, raised the hood and left my suite, locking it behind me as I left. The locked door would add another layer of protection for a few days and by the time they checked I would be long gone.

With my room locked, I began to sneak out of the airship. It wasn't hard. Just like the night before I easily made it down to the cargo hold. Once there I found the exit and took it. The door was locked but I could easily open it and used the ramp to walk down and back into Fire Fountain city, after making sure that the door was closed and locked behind me so as to not arouse suspicion too soon.

Pulling my cloak around me, lowering the hood, and keeping my head down I set off into the night to face the bleak future that was now in front of me. I was officially a deserter from the Death Eater. My life on the run had begun.

**Regulus' time on the run has begun. The next chapter will address how he adapted to life on the run before the experiences that changed his world view. As stated, the next chapter will be late but it will be up as soon as it is ready. That's all for this chapter, as always let me know what you think of my work in reviews or PMs, they are always useful. Until next time.**

**Stringdog**


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